Dark Possession
by DarkPossession
Summary: Anko Mitarashi is turning seventeen, but the one she'd tried to forget has come back to haunt her once more. What will she do when the man she'd used to admire with all her heart reveals that he wants her to be his again? Anko/Orochimaru
1. The Birthday Party

"Happy Birthday, Anko!" cheered the voices of five people, party poppers being blasted into the air at her arrival. The purple-haired kunoichi herself had walked into her apartment two seconds ago before recoiling in shock at the sight of all her friends in one place, even worse, her place, her apartment! _They better not have looked at my stuff_ was her first thought, but then she came to appreciate the effort her friends had put in to try and give her a happy birthday.

Her living room was decorated in colours, a banner hanging at the back reading _Happy 17__th__ Birthday,_ and balloons of all shapes and colours were floating on the ceiling and lying on the carpeted floor. Confetti was also on the ground from the party poppers, and all the 'guests' to the party were wearing bright clothing.

Iruka Umino was present, as well as Kakashi Hatake, Asuma Sarutobi, Kurenai Yūhi and Ibiki Morino. Anko could only smile appreciatively and give friendly hugs as her surprise birthday party was thrown right in her face. She was pushed around, handed drinks and then pushed to the next surprise. She tried to protest, but was completely ignored as her friends tried to treat her to the best party ever. Only one person seemed to notice her negative feelings and that was Iruka, and Anko appreciated it when he backed off her, enjoying the festivities without trying to get in her face.

She finally got time to think when they all sat down on her couches, slipping a DVD into the player beneath her television. Unfortunately, Kakashi had chosen the film and she was subjected to watching Make Out Paradise, something she detested upon belief; this was mainly because she'd once caught Jiraiya 'researching' her whilst writing the book. As the movie rolled on she allowed her mind to wander, relax after a hard day's work. She'd been out on a mission for the whole day, a request by her, would you believe it. She'd wanted to take her mind off what day it was, because she hated her birthday. She hated every single birthday she'd ever had or would ever have in the future. Why? Because five years ago on this exact day was when she'd been abandoned by the one she'd called her sensei, leaving her broken inside forever.

"Come on, Anko! Time to open your presents!" Kurenai called out after the movie had ended. Anko groaned, wearily moving off the couch she'd sprawled herself out on and crawling towards the small stack of gifts that lay next to the television. She counted them quickly, one, two, three, four, five... six? She counted the people present and they tallied five, so had someone given her an extra present? Or had someone dropped a gift off earlier for her? She frowned, but thought nothing of it. She assumed it was most likely Iruka. He'd been giving her funny stares lately, and she'd caught him more than once ogling at her from a distance.

"Mine first," Kurenai said, taking the top present off the pile and handing it to her. It was neatly wrapped, a rectangular shape covered in blue and red wrapping paper with a black bow tied around it. She appreciated the lack of pink things on the wrapping. She absolutely _hated_ the colour pink, and wished death upon all who presented anything pink to her. Kurenai obviously valued her life. With a chuckle Anko accepted the gift and tore off the bow and wrapping paper. She hated birthdays, but she couldn't pass up the opportunity to get stuff for free.

Anko observed the long brown box she'd unwrapped, and taking off the lid she let out a sigh. She didn't want to seem rude, but she wanted to recoil at the sight of the perfumes and little bath soaps within the rectangular box. Ah, when would Kurenai learn?

"Urr, you can have them," she said, shoving the box right back at Kurenai. Kurenai laughed. "I'd hoped you'd changed," she said, and took the box and placed it beside her. She knew Anko would never use perfumes and the sort, but so far Anko hadn't seemed to have had a boyfriend or any kind of love life, and she hoped she could make Anko into more of a... girl... so she could maybe attract a boy into her life. But it seemed each attempt was in vain as Anko waved off all her countless tries to make her wear dresses, put on some perfume or wear make-up, and be a bit more, to be blunt, nicer to everyone. She could be a right bitch, but at the same time she was their bitch and everyone in the room loved her as a friend.

Behind them Ibiki let a husky laugh leave his lips, a scary kind of laugh that could make even the toughest of people flinch. Anko's head whirled around as Ibiki got up off the couch, his big boots clunking across the carpet despite the softness. He took the next present off the small stack and passed it to Anko.

"Now here's a real present for you, not some fancy perfume that'll only get you killed on the battlefield. A lot of ninja hunt by smell!" he said, giving her a hard stare. Ibiki looked a lot better than what he would in later years, lacking both of the scars across his face. His face then brightened with a hearty grin as he watched Anko take the present. It wasn't even wrapped, just a black box slightly longer than her hand. She took off the lid and her eyes gleamed at the sight of a kunai, kanji etched into the steel that she instantly recognized as her own name. Now this was more like it.

"Thank you, Ibiki!" she said with a sadistic glee in her voice that made Kurenai eye her warily.

"No problem," he replied, waving it off as if it were nothing. Anko took the kunai out of the box and ran a finger across its edge, pleased when it left a small cut in her finger. A bead of crimson blood dripped from the self-inflicted injury, and she licked it off as if it were nothing, tasty even.

"Right, who's next?" Anko said whilst looking around as Ibiki sat back down. Kakashi waved a hand lazily.

"My gift's the next one on the pile," he pointed out, and Anko snatched it up. She hoped it wasn't what she thought it was. Tearing off the blue wrapping she groaned.

"Come on, Kakashi! Why?" she said, holding up a copy of the Make Out Paradise book. He just loved that book too much. Kakashi grinned at her.

"Go on, read it! It's really good, and I guarantee you'll like it. Not everything has to be filled with bloodshed you know," he said with a knowing smile. Anko narrowed her eyes at him and chucked the book at his face, but he ducked and it soared overhead. She watched it hit the floor, a few pages crumpling in the awkward position it'd landed, but she didn't care.

Kakashi sighed at her lack of enthusiasm for the book, but Anko had moved on to her next present. She snatched up an envelope, eying it intensely as if trying to make it melt with the sheer force of her gaze. She looked at the scruffy writing on the front of the envelope and identified it as Asuma's. Maybe the extra present she'd counted went with the letter, but when she reached out for the presents Asuma cut in.

"You're not so disinterested in my gift that you're just going to ignore it and move on, are you?" he asked with a laugh. She moved away from the presents and picked up the letter again.

"Course not," she replied with a laugh of her own; coughing as some of the smoke Asuma had blown over from his cigarette entered her system. "And I told you to put that damn cigarette out. Not in my apartment!" she said angrily. Asuma apologised before stuffing out the end and throwing the little cigar in the bin. Anko huffed. "Much better."

She tore open the envelope and looked at the card within. It wasn't a birthday card, but when she realised what it was her heart leapt and she got very hungry. She jumped to her feet and threw herself at Asuma, wrapping her arms around his neck and hugging him energetically.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" she yelled, and then noticed that Kurenai was staring at her, appalled. Anko quickly got off Asuma and backed away, remembering about Kurenai's confession to her.

"_I... I think I fancy Asuma, Anko..."_

"_What? Why?"_

"_Ahck! I knew I shouldn't have told you!"_

"_No! It's fine! I won't tell anyone, promise."_

"_Thank you, Anko... It's sort of embarrassing"_

"_Not at all! In fact, it's kind of cute, heh heh."_

"_Really?"_

"_Really."_

Anko looked down at the card in her hand. It was a card that entitled her to have free dango for a whole year! She licked her lips in anticipation, excited for the mountains of dango she'd scoff down. This would definitely be good when she was in a depressed mood – her favourite food generally made her feel so much happier.

"And now, Iruka," Anko said, looking over at the boy. He hadn't said anything in the whole time they'd been unwrapping presents, just standing by the wall watching on. There were two presents left, and Iruka kindly pointed out what one was his.

"The smaller one," he said with a smile. His look carried something that she quickly deciphered. Pity. She didn't like it when people took pity on her, and she hated it when she didn't know why they pitied her. She guessed she'd know once she'd opened the gift. Unwrapping the present she found a box with what looked like tribal markings on the side.

"Huh?" she said, opening the lid. She saw a talisman inside, a circular object with beads and pieces of string hanging off it. It had a weird eye-shape in the centre of the circle. Anko shivered. She didn't like it as it creeped her out. "What is...?"

"It's a talisman..." Iruka explained. "To ward off bad dreams." Anko stiffened at the mention of that. How did he know she'd been having bad dreams lately? She quickly relaxed so as not to arouse the suspicion of anyone in the room and nodded her head.

"Thanks, I'll put it by my bed later," Anko said, and she meant it. She hated the bad dreams and nightmares, because they always revolved around the same person. _Him._ He who had ruined her life, poisoned her mind, caused a distrust to spread across the village towards her when they learned _she'd_ been _his_ student. And now there was one more present.

"So, urr, who's the last present from?" she asked, waiting for one of them to raise their hands and come forward, relieving her of her worries about the neatly wrapped gift. However, that was not the case. No one came forward, only looked awkwardly at her and then everyone else, wondering who had brought it.

"Maybe someone came and dropped it off earlier?" Kurenai suggested. Anko frowned, not satisfied with just that. Kakashi spoke up.

"I can check what's in it with my Sharingan? Just so we can find out if it's dangerous or not?" he said, hand moving up to be placed on his ninja headband. Despite wearing new clothes for Anko's surprise party he still wore his mask and his forehead protector. They were just a part of who he was, and she knew he had to wear something over his eye to conserve energy, and an eye-patch would make him look like a complete idiot.

"Nah... Don't worry. It's my birthday, I'm sure it's just something harmless like... a puppy or something," Anko suggested, pulling the large present towards herself. Kakashi laughed.

"You should know from experience that dogs and puppies aren't harmless," he said. Anko couldn't help but agree in her head. She'd met Kakashi for the first time after being dared to break into his house at night to see if it was true he still wore his mask whilst sleeping. She'd done the dare, broke in, and instantly been chased out by a pack of angry ninken. After receiving a bad bite to her leg she'd never underestimated the ferocity of dogs again. She never did find out if Kakashi wore his mask at night or not though, but it would be awkward if she asked him now so she didn't.

She took the neatly stuck-on tag off the gift and put it on the ground, slowly taking off the wrapping paper, but then she got too impatient for that. She held her breath as she ripped the rest of the wrapping paper off, and nearly screamed when a sudden rushing hiss filled the room. Kakashi, Kurenai and herself had jumped though, but all she'd unwrapped was a box. They turned around angrily to see Asuma by the taps in her kitchen which was in the same room as her living room, a cup in his hands that was filling with water. It was just a tap. Just a tap. Anko gave Asuma a death glare, and he responded by mouthing an apology and turning off the tap. Ibiki just looked plain amused.

She turned back to the box, calming herself. Alright, here goes. _One, two, three!_ She yanked off the box's lid and instantly felt a heavy weight strike her in the face. Stars flashed in her eyes as she bordered unconsciousness, but brought her mind back to reality in time to duck a blurred object moving towards her face again. A hissing noise filled the room again, but this time Anko knew it wasn't the tap. Everyone seemed to be moving around quickly, and Anko knew that she should be moving too. She hastily stood up, but felt the heavy weight strike her in the back this time. She stumbled forward but Iruka caught her, helping her to her feet whilst Kakashi moved agilely towards the creature that had attacked her. It shot at him, but he'd removed his headband, and his Sharingan showing and active meant certain defeat of the attacker. Kakashi caught the creature around the throat, his features curled into a heavy frown as he looked at it. Anko turned around, sight fuzzy as she brought herself back to focus. The world soon became sharp again and she was looking at a snake. Not just any snake, but a fucking **huge** snake. Anko cried out as she felt the snake's intentions, but it was too late. The snake buried its fangs into Kakashi's hand, and he cried out, letting the reptile go.

"No!" Anko yelled. The venom that snake would have in itself would be enough to kill Kakashi with ease. "Kurenai! Quickly! Get Kakashi to the hospital! Ibiki! Go with them! This party's over!" she moved into action. The snake had aimed another attack at Kakashi's neck this time, but Asuma had intervened, hitting the snake against a wall. It left a large dent in the wall, and Anko swore. She didn't want to pay to have that repaired.

Kurenai was now at Kakashi's side, Ibiki helping too. Asuma was staring at the snake he'd just hit, and Anko was aware of Iruka moving behind her. Anko stared hard at the snake, as if she was trying to remember something, but suddenly she felt a pain in her neck and gasped. The snake had then moved from its position on the ground. Before Asuma could do anything about it the snake, so large and scary, had shot itself at the defenceless Anko. She couldn't do anything; she was going to die just like Kakashi was going to if they didn't get him out of here quickly to the hospital.

"Anko! Catch!" Iruka yelled behind her. Anko managed to use her incredible reflexes to turn her body in time to catch a sharp projectile that had whizzed at her. The snake was suddenly upon her, but she was now armed. She thrust her arm up, the kunai with her name imbedded upon it stabbing the snake through the head. The life flickered out of its eyes, blood splashing across the kunai and dripping from the snakes head onto the floor. Anko was breathing hard, feeling a painful prickling in the left side of her neck. She pulled her kunai from the dead animal's head and let its lifeless body hit the floor with a thud. She looked up to see Kakashi breathing heavily, trying to overcome the poison that was overwhelming his system. They were at the door, him, Kurenai and Ibiki. Ibiki gave a curt nod to Anko before the three of them left her apartment. Asuma ran out after them, a worried look on his face. Iruka looked helpless.

"I'll help you clean up," he soon suggested, and started to walk towards her kitchen.

"No... no... Just go home. I'll clean up by myself, Iruka. Thanks for the party," she said, and watched a glum Iruka nod his understanding before leaving her apartment too, closing the door behind him. After the final echoing sound of Iruka's footsteps melted away to nothingness Anko looked around. She was alone now, just her, the dead snake and the little tag that had been attached to the final 'gift', the neat and fancy writing on it reading out: _Happy Birthday, my dear Anko._


	2. Bottled Up Tears

"Shit..." Anko sighed, flopping down onto her bed. She'd put the dead snake into a bin bag in case she needed to look at it later and scrubbed all the blood that had come out of its head off of her carpet. There was still a little red tint to her carpet, but she really hadn't been bothered with completely getting rid of it all. She'd left her broken wall alone, putting a sticky note onto her fridge to remind her to get someone to fix it. She'd put her presents away (throwing the Make Out Paradise book into the bin on the way to the kitchen) and had licked her new kunai free of the snake's blood. Performing the action made her feel sick to the core though, as it was one more reminder of _him._ She'd considered going to the hospital to check up on Kakashi, but she'd decided that he was already crowded with Asuma, Kurenai, and Ibiki, and she'd only be a nuisance.

She curled up on the mattress, her hands moving up to hold onto her head. She remembered picking up the little tag, looking at the fancy writing and feeling that wave of shock as she recognized the way the sender of the present had addressed her.

"_my dear Anko"_

She let go of her head, turning her body around to look at the cabinet running along her wall. Her pupil-less eyes ran across the photo frames that were put up on it, each holding a memory of their own. A memory of her and Iruka at a dumpling shop, a memory of her hitting Kakashi around the head after he'd tried to take her dango from her, a memory of her sitting on a bench eating dango. She chuckled in her mind. She ate a lot of dango. Then her eyes fell upon the last photo.

She slipped her body off of the bed and got to her feet, walking over to the photo. Her right hand reached out and picked up the detailed black frame and brought it up so she could look at it better. That was when the first tear fell, sliding down her cheek before dripping off onto the plastic protecting the photo; she and her sensei, Anko and Orochimaru. She was so much younger, looking bright and happy, and Orochimaru, he didn't look as happy as she did but he had still been there, beside her, still caring for her. _Or had he?_ After the incident so much doubt had flooded in, and she came to wonder if he'd ever cared about her at all.

"Orochimaru..." she whispered. She'd cared so much about him, idolized him, _loved_ him. He'd been her whole world, and he... he'd abandoned her; left her after she'd finally ran out of use to him and his twisted experiments. "You bastard," she growled. She shook as more tears welled in her eyes against her will. There were nights when she cried herself to sleep, and there were nights when she was plagued by nightmares that were filled with his hypnotic, golden eyes and his demonic, twisted laughter. She would try and try again to forget him, but in the end she knew she'd never escape the serpent.

She took the picture back to her bed, dropping onto the mattress as the tears began to flow. Running down her cheeks they dropped off and splattered her bed sheets, leaving little dark marks where they'd exploded on impact. She turned onto her side, looking at the photo. Every single day she went out into the world with a brave face on, a tough aura surrounding her as she tried to make herself into a strong, reliable kunoichi. Every single day she tried her hardest to make herself known to Konoha as someone they could count on, yet every single day she knew they would never fully accept her. She wasn't blind. She saw the mistrusting looks they gave her, felt the distrust that radiated from every citizen of the Village Hidden in the Leaves. She heard the whispers. _"She's the one! She's _his _student!" _It was all the same; every single time. Anko felt more tears running down her face. She knew she'd never be fully accepted into the village, never fully trusted, and why? It was all Orochimaru's fault! She cried out in anger, her fingers tightening around the photo frame.

"Why! Why did you have to come into my life! I would've been... fine... without you... You ruined everything! Even my friends don't trust me..." she whispered. Every day she bottled up all her emotions, all her **true** emotions. The hatred, the loneliness, and the complete and utter despair that wrenched her heart apart with every breath she took. She hated Orochimaru with every fiber of her being. Every day she cursed him, but if he'd known he'd only have laughed at her. He always laughed. He mocked who she was, mocked that she would never, **ever** be strong enough for his liking. He mocked that she didn't have the hatred and lust for power that he had, something he said was what made her worthless to him.

"I'm not... useless..." Anko said. She sniffed, pulling the covers of her bed up to cover the back of her body. She savoured the warmth, feeling like it was helping ward off the evils of her former sensei's dark will. He said she didn't have the hatred. She hated him so much and his words counted as lies to her now. He said she didn't have the lust for power. That was true.

"I'm going to kill you, Orochimaru," she swore, fighting off the urge to throw the picture frame across the room. She came to terms with fact right then that she was weak. She'd never had the lust for power like him because she denied every single day that she was like him, even though she knew the elders of the village and everyone else thought she was. This lack of a lust for power wasn't to her ex-sensei's liking, and she cherished that thought now, thinking she could scorn him with it, but at the same time it made her feel upset that she'd never been able to make him completely happy with her. She'd spent so much time trying to please him, to prove herself to him. She regretted her childish actions now, but at the same time... missed it?

"Shut up, Anko," she said to herself in shock. She couldn't miss him. He was the enemy! The one who'd thrown her aside like trash! The one who'd sent her the snake today that had tried to kill her. She blinked back more tears. She was sure he'd sent the snake. It only made sense. The stupid bastard, she'd definitely kill him. One day she would, but not today. She hugged the picture closer to her chest and pulled the bed sheets completely over herself, letting the darkness envelop her as she cried herself to sleep.


	3. A Date to Remember

Things went by quickly for the next week, and it was hectic. Jiraiya was in town, so he managed to contact Tsunade in time to have a strong antidote concocted for Kakashi. He was recovering quickly now, and was frequently visited by those who had attended the party. Anko had visited once and apologised for what had happened, although he'd weakly murmured that it was fine and that she wasn't to worry. Ibiki had gone over the events that had unfolded to the ANBU and Hokage, and Anko had had her whole apartment searched. She felt the sick feeling in her stomach when they questioned her on why she had a picture of her old sensei in her room, but she told them it was "none of your fucking business." She'd handed over the snake and they'd taken it off to do god-knows-what with it, and had been asked who she thought had sent the reptilian. She'd had an inside battle, deciding whether to tell them or to cover Orochimaru's arse so the ANBU didn't search all over the village for him. If they killed him it wouldn't satisfy her. _She_ had to be the one to do it. She'd told them though, and after she assumed they'd exchanged worried glances behind their masks they bid their farewells, telling Anko to tell them if she ever saw Orochimaru around.

"Stop fucking looking at me like that," Anko growled at a young boy who'd been staring fearfully at her, making him burst into tears and run off. She scowled. Somehow word had spread about the incident at her apartment and now there were more distrusting looks than ever! She was getting sick and tired of it. She could feel the intentions of some of the villagers, and if they had it their way she'd be kicked out of Konoha, or worse, killed. Yes, she had a short temper and it got the better of her sometimes, but that didn't make her like Orochimaru. Yet for some reason everyone saw that as a little bit of the Snake Sannin coming out of her, and hated her all the more because of it.

"I swear, the next person to look at me like that is dead meat," she growled to herself, continuing on her way to the dango shop. She was in a foul mood, mainly because of the hate she'd felt coming her way lately, and felt like tearing someone's head off to release her anger. However, she'd wanted to avoid getting herself into that kind of trouble so had settled on going for dango instead. She soon stormed through the entrance to the shop, flinging her body into her usual seat and banging her fist loudly on the table in front of her.

"Dango, NOW!" she yelled. The woman behind the counter in the shop jumped with fright and scurried off to get Anko her usual mountain of dango. They'd tested her anger before, and they'd never do it again. Less than a minute later the hot-tempered kunoichi was chewing hungrily on her favourite food, the thin stick skewering the delicacy held casually in her hand. She started to feel a lot better, and happily chomped down over ten sticks.

Anko looked up mid-chew when she noticed someone familiar enter the shop. With spiky brown hair and a scar across the bridge of his nose, Iruka's eyes were already on her and she grinned, waving him over. Iruka had never given her a single look of distrust, and for that he was a good friend of hers. Iruka sat down beside Anko and smiled a little, turning down a stick of dango Anko held out to him. She did have a coupon for unlimited dango for a year from Asuma, and by god she wasn't going to let it go to waste.

"So, Iruka, what're you doing here?" Anko asked casually, putting down her precious dango for a moment.

"Well, I was looking for you... actually," he said, a light blush touching his cheeks. Anko eyed him suspiciously, raising an eyebrow.

"Why?" she pressed.

"I wanted to know... well... if you wanted to go out some time?" he asked, eyes screwing tight as he awaited some form of pain to be dealt by Anko. She'd never particularly showed any interest in him, not the kind of interest he'd shown her, and would probably laugh at him. "Actually, ne-"

"Yeah, sure," Anko replied, cutting off Iruka's attempt to stop himself getting too embarrassed by cancelling his request. Anko wasn't sure why she was agreeing to go on a date with Iruka. Maybe it was because she felt happy with all the dango she'd eaten and was just going on a pleasing streak, or maybe it was because he was such a good friend that she couldn't stand to see his despairing face if she rejected him. Or maybe she liked him a little? Anko didn't know, but she was intrigued to see what Iruka could do to make their date special. After all, she was a hard woman to please.

"R- really?" he gasped, shocked.

"Yup. I'm free tonight. Whaddya say?" she said with a sly wink.

"That sounds... great! I'm so happy!" he said, then flushed a bright red. "Umm, I know a nice restaurant. We could go there?" he said, then noticed Anko with her mouth full of dango again. "And they sell dango! So, you'll definitely like it!"

"Haha, even if they didn't sell dango I'd go. You asked _me_ out, remember? You get to pick," _although them having dango has definitely made me more willing to go_ she added in her head. Anko then swallowed her mouthful of dango and grinned at Iruka again. He really did look happy, and it made Anko feel happy too that she hadn't scared off everyone yet.

"Great. I'll see you tonight then? I'll pick you up at eight," he said with a big smile. Anko let a sly smile find its way to her expression, amused by his gentleman-like-ways. It was just so cliché, _"I'll pick you up at eight," _but she liked it.

"See you," she replied, and watched Iruka stand up happily and leave the dango shop. She laughed when she heard a loud whoop sound from outside, and finished off her last few dango. If she ate anymore she'd be sick, and that wouldn't be good. She flashed her coupon to the woman behind the counter, who looked absolutely appalled at the amount of dango Anko had eaten, and then left the shop herself. She headed back home, wanting to freshen up before tonight. She didn't know why she was fussing. Maybe it was because she actually wanted tonight to go well. She chuckled. Maybe life wasn't so bleak after all.

The usual click sounded as she unlocked her house and slipped inside, another small booming sound coming as she closed the door behind her. She flicked on a light switch and her apartment was thrown into colour, then she moved lazily to her bedroom. She had a couple of hours until Iruka would come, and had wasted some more time today with pit stops. She'd checked in on Kakashi, hearing the good news that he would be out, up and running again within the week, and had then gone to the shops to try and buy some new clothes for tonight. It really didn't go well. Seeing all the dresses made her want to throw up, so she'd hurriedly left. As she entered her room she noticed something lying on the bed. It was a neatly wrapped present. She was instantly on guard, pulling her customised kunai from a pocket. However she relaxed when noticing a tag on the box.

"_Thought you might like this for tonight – love, Kurenai."_

Anko recognized the shape of the box. She laughed, putting away her kunai. How Kurenai had found out about her and Iruka meeting up was beyond her, but even so, the fact Kurenai had sneakily found a way for her to finally accept her birthday present was very amusing. She ripped off the wrapping paper and took of the box's lid, her brown eyes once more looking over the perfumes and bath soaps Kurenai had gotten her.

"Aha... It couldn't hurt, I guess," Anko said, taking out a few of the bath soaps. She walked into her bathroom and looked at the bath, chuckling slightly. It had been a long time since she'd had a bath. She preferred showers. She put the bath soaps aside and twisted the taps on the bath, allowing the cool and hot water to run out into the basin. It slowly began to fill, and Anko poured in some bubble bath before she left the bathroom to quickly get undressed.

Once nude she quickly moved back into the bathroom where the bath had just about filled. She dipped her hand in, feeling its warmth. She made a nice humming sound before turning off the taps and sliding her body into the tub. She felt the warmth spread across her body, and it was heaven. She relaxed, feeling all the tension leave her. She could stay like this for hours! She didn't know why she'd never done anything like this before!

"Aha, this is the life," she sighed, before sinking lower into the bath. She decided she'd stay in here for an hour or so and then go and get ready for Iruka. She remembered Kurenai's many attempts to get her to be more of a girl, and a few had been getting her to wear dresses. As much as she loathed them, she had a bin-bag full of them from Kurenai, stashed away somewhere or another. She'd hunt for them after her bath. For now... "Ahhh..." she closed her eyes, allowing all her worries to wash away.

_Knock, Knock, Knock!_

Anko's eyes snapped open. Who was knocking? She snatched at her clock next to the bathtub and stared at it with worried eyes. It was eight already! She must have fallen asleep! She pulled the plug out of her bathtub and leaped out of the bath, throwing a towel on and rushing into her bedroom.

"Who is it!" she yelled, hoping to stall for time.

"It's Iruka," sounded a happy reply from behind the door. Meanwhile Anko had rubbed herself dry of the bathwater and soap, and was tearing through her wardrobe for something to wear.

"Shit, shit, shit," she mumbled, throwing aside clothes to try and find that bin-bag. She soon found it, buried amongst some jeans, and yanked it out onto her bed.

"Can I come in?" Iruka called from outside her apartment.

"HOLD ON!" Anko screamed back, going through the various dresses Kurenai had tried to make her wear. One was sent flying through the air and hit her door. Another landed in her bathroom. A few more were merely thrown to the floor, and finally the last dress emerged.

"Perfect," she stated, quickly disposing of the towel and pulling on the dress. She hated how it felt, but if it could make her look any better then she'd endure it; not that she cared about looks, but she wanted to make Iruka feel... special, in a way. Anko could almost feel the intense worrying that Iruka was doing. Maybe he thought she didn't want to go out with him anymore, but either way she'd be out in a few seconds. She grabbed a hair band, quickly tying up her hair into its usual spiky ponytail, then slipped on her necklace and dived for Kurenai's present. She grabbed a perfume and sprayed it on her neck a few times, smelling the cherry blossom. She didn't want to keep Iruka waiting any longer, so dashed for the door. She glimpsed herself in a mirror as she ran and was shocked. Wearing a dress made her look so much more different! It was a long crimson silk dress that reached down to just below her knees, and was strapless. She looked... nice in it, but Anko didn't like that thought and pretended to gag.

"Coming!" Anko called, finally yanking open her door to reveal Iruka standing on her doorstep. He looked insanely awkward, the worry on his face evident. He'd definitely thought that she didn't want to come out to see him, but his face lit up when he finally saw Anko. Anko herself looked a mess. Her dress had been put on a little lopsidedly, a few strands of her violet hair were loose from her ponytail, and she was breathing heavily from running around trying to get ready. Not to mention the fact that she'd forgotten to put shoes on. Iruka shuffled his feet around awkwardly. He looked great, wearing a handsome-looking black tuxedo with a little black bow too.

"Did you... forget about our date?" he asked nervously. Anko twitched.

"Course I didn't, Iruka. Jesus, don't go throwing around stupid accusations," she said with a huff. Iruka frowned and leaned forward, brushing one of her stray strands of hair out of her face.

"You look a mess," he said in response, slightly pushing his luck with the hot-tempered kunoichi. For his cheekiness she hit him around the head, and then laughed slightly.

"Heh, fine. I didn't forget, but I did fall asleep. Sorry," she laughed awkwardly, rubbing the back of her head. Iruka walked past Anko into her apartment.

"Come on, I'll help fix you up," he said, taking Anko's hand and leading her into her bedroom. She pulled her hand back once in the room, moving smoothly to her cabinet and pulling over the picture of her and Orochimaru so the photo was facing down, unable to be seen. Then she let Iruka fix her up.

Ten minutes later Anko and Iruka walked out of her apartment, hand in hand. Her hair looked back to normal now, no more strands hanging loose, and she had shoes on now. They walked together down Konoha's streets, Iruka leading the way to his little restaurant. At one point Anko heard someone whispering to their friend in the street.

"Hey, is that Iruka with Orochimaru's student?"

"Yeah, I think it is! That's terrible. He's only going to get himself hurt."

"Not just that! What if she influences him? I heard he wanted to be a teacher at the academy. I don't want my kids getting taught by that kind of person."

"Man, you're right! He better not become a teacher or I might just complain."

Anko despaired for Iruka then. She took in all the hate and endured it, but Iruka wasn't as tough as her. She didn't want to see him get hated on and have his whole life ruined just because he was spending time around her. Iruka seemed to notice her despair and gripped her hand tighter.

"Don't worry, Anko. One day the whole village will realise that you're a good person... just like I know you are," he said with a shy smile. Anko's face displayed slight shock. It seemed that all this time she'd thought her friends feared and disliked her a little too, when actually she had people who cared for her all along, like Iruka. She smiled back, feeling a lot happier. They continued walking.

Soon the restaurant came into view. It was nicely decorated on the outside, and had a low gate around it and a part of the street in front of it where there were tables and chairs. They walked inside and there were more tables. The first word that came to Anko's mind was 'light'. There were lanterns of every colour hanging from nearly everything in the restaurant, but the many colours looked nice together and the way they'd been neatly arranged made the place look festive, bright and quite beautiful. There were quite a lot of people beside them in the restaurant, around eleven others. Ten had come in pairs, and one man sat on his own. Iruka checked in with a woman by the counter and they soon took their place by a table near a window. Iruka had managed to find a nice jacket in the depths of Anko's wardrobe which she wore now, but approaching their table she slipped it off and put it on the back of her chair. She sat down, Iruka miming her opposite to where she sat, and then watched her date to see what he'd do.

"I didn't think you'd say yes, Anko... I'm shocked," he said. Anko frowned. Why dwell on things like that? He was supposed to be wooing her, not going on about his own insecurity. "But, you did. It's made me so happy. Thank you."

"Hnnn." Anko waved a hand at him, waving off his thank you as if it was nothing. "I was interested in what you'd do," she explained, not telling him that she thought she might be able to find feelings for him somewhere in her hardened soul. She picked up a menu off the table and began to look down it casually. She already knew what she wanted. Dango did it for her every time. Anko soon put down her menu and observed Iruka looking at his own menu, not as sure as Anko on what he wanted. He did have such a nice, innocent smile...

Across the room the man sitting on his own chuckled, a dark, sadistic chuckle that was low enough for only him to hear. He had short brown hair and wore the standard Chūnin uniform in the Leaf Village. Beneath his table he made a couple of hand seals, his eyes locked onto the pair who had just entered the restaurant. Afterwards he let his hands relax, bringing them up to rest on the table, interlocking as he licked his lips hungrily. He looked like a normal Chūnin from the village, sporting the right uniform and a Konoha headband, looking like a normal citizen who'd you would pass on the street and not think twice about. But... he had the most curious golden eyes.

Finally Iruka finished picking what he wanted and he called over someone to take their order. Anko had found a napkin and was trying to fold it into a shuriken when the male came over to their table.

"Are you ready to order?" the man asked.

"Yes, umm, I'd like..." Iruka started, taking another look at the menu to remember what all the foods were called. That was then Anko looked up from her napkin-shuriken. She jumped so violently that the table lurched and fell sideways, causing Iruka alarm as he tried to avoid the falling furniture. Standing by their table, the one who was to take their orders... it was... Orochimaru! Anko felt a scream catch in her throat, staring with wide eyes at her former sensei, cursing herself for not taking at least a single kunai out with her for protection. The scream managed to get past her throat and was rising to her lips when... Orochimaru disappeared. A horrified waiter stood where Orochimaru had been, holding his pad and pen unsteadily as he stared at Anko, rooted to the spot with fear. She'd taken one look at him and jumped so hard she'd upturned a table. Had he scared her? Or was she going to attack him? He started to think the rumours about the girl were true now. Maybe she was a bit crazy, a bit twisted, like _him._

"I'm so sorry!" Anko gasped, immediately reaching down and grasping one side of the table. Iruka helped her quickly pull the table back up onto its four legs and then stared oddly at her. Anko couldn't believe it. She'd just seen _Orochimaru, _except it wasn't actually him. It had been an illusion. She wondered why the hell she was seeing her ex-sensei when in fact it was just some harmless waiter who she'd probably just scared the crap out of. She looked hastily around with worry etched upon her face. She didn't see anyone out of the ordinary here, or at least she didn't see anyone who looked like they'd want to put any illusions on her. Was she just imagining it then?

"It's... fine, Anko," Iruka said, trying to forget that. It'd been strange to say the least. Was Anko alright? He worried for her, and tried to ignore the nagging feeling at the back of his mind; Anko had fallen asleep even though she'd known that they were going on a date, and hadn't let him into her apartment for at least five minutes after he'd knocked. Now she was acting all freaked out and being a little bit weird. Was she trying to make him not want to have this date? Was she trying to get out of going out with him?

"If you don't want to go out with me, Anko, it's fine... really..." he mumbled. Anko snapped out of her worried state and shot him a hard stare that made him cower slightly.

"Of course I want to be here, right now, on a **date** with **you**, Iruka. Why the hell do you think I said yes when you asked me?" she demanded, then turned to the waited. He looked uncomfortable and awkward, not knowing what to do. "I want dango! Give me lots of it, okay?" she said, watching the man quickly scribble down her order. "Your turn Iruka."

As Iruka fetched the menus off the floor and gave out his order, Anko looked around. It was only now that she realised how much attention she'd gained from her little stunt. Everyone in the room was looking at their table, looking at her. Anko saw the fear in their eyes, and huffed. She turned back to Iruka, watching him finish up and allow the waiter to leave. He watched the man go and then turned back to Anko, locking eyes with her.

"HOLY SHIT!" she yelled, nearly falling back off her chair. It was happening again! Iruka's eyes had changed colour to a deep gold, his pupils turned to slits. In those feared eyes she recalled painful memories of her younger years. She shook her head, feeling a horrible sense of despair engulfing her. When she re-opened her eyes Iruka's eyes were back to normal, scared and worried for her.

"Anko are you okay!" Iruka demanded. This date wasn't going as he'd hoped at all.

"I'm fine! Sorry, I thought I saw something..." she said, coming up with a lame excuse but not caring. She couldn't tell him that she was seeing her old sensei everywhere she looked, could she? He'd think she was crazy and leave, and then she'd lose what seemed like her only true friend who actually understood some of her feelings.

"It's fine, again. But please, if you're not feeling well we can go get you some medicine or something... I don't know, but you're scaring me now, Anko. You seemed fine this morning..." Iruka retorted, the fear he'd proclaimed easily visible in his eyes.

"I'm telling you, I'm fine! It's nothing! Now stop questioning me!" she growled back. She was feeling her temper rise now, and didn't want to take it out on Iruka. She'd wanted to make him feel happy when she'd agreed to go on this date, make herself happy too, but so far she was only pushing him further away.

"Fine... I believe you. Now, cheer up, you look miserable. The food will be here soon," he said, bending down and picking something up off the floor. He presented Anko her little napkin-shuriken back to her, and she took it back, amused slightly. Her temper began to die away as she toyed with her piece of origami. She tossed it at Iruka, who laughed and caught it. He tossed it back, and soon they were immersed in a game of catch.

"Here's your... dango... miss..." she waiter said nervously, putting a plate of dango in front of Anko. He looked fearfully at the kunoichi before backing away towards Iruka. "And ramen... for you," he said, placing the bowl in front of Iruka. Iruka grinned at Anko.

"Dig in," he said, and started to eat his favourite food as Anko dug into her own. She picked up the stick holding the dango and chewed off the first one, letting the flavour wash away her troubles...

"_Anko,"_ whispered a voice through her ear, and she only realised what she then did after it was too late. She opened her eyes to see Iruka looking at her aghast, covered in chewed up pieces of dango. He looked completely crestfallen, upset and frustrated at her. Anko looked despairing, standing up from her chair as Iruka did. She'd spat her food all over him, and she knew this was it. He wouldn't give her another chance, at least not today. Three strikes, and now she was out.

"I'm sorr-" Anko started.

"No! No more sorry's. That's it! There's something wrong with you today. If you don't like me then just say! You don't have to... have to... spit your food all over me for me to get the message! Go home! Get some sleep! Don't talk to me until you've figured out what's wrong. _I'm _sorry, Anko. Sorry that I made you come out on a date with me," he said, and stormed out of the restaurant, leaving Anko standing by herself at their table, dejected.

"You know, you're going to have to pay the bill," a woman at the counter piped up.

"Fuck off," Anko snarled, and stomped out of the restaurant too. She'd ruined everything! No, _he'd_ ruined everything. If only _his_ voice hadn't whispered her name to her she wouldn't have spat her dango all over Iruka. But, hearing his voice again had triggered something in her. She was definitely feeling more emotional now. At first she'd seen him, then she'd seen his eyes, then she'd heard his voice. Was she going crazy? Did she miss that little bastard or something? No. She didn't miss him, but she sure as hell wasn't able to forget him, and she knew she had to either get her arse over that damn hill and forget about him once and for all or kill him and be rid of him forever. She continued to storm back to her apartment, her fury pooling off her in waves. Everyone she came across cowered under her presence. Back in the restaurant, the golden-eyed Chūnin smirked triumphantly.

Anko had gone home, tearing off her dress and throwing it in the bin. She'd just managed to hold back from setting the bloody bin on fire. She'd dressed in pyjamas and then grabbed the frame holding the picture of her and Orochimaru. This time she wasn't emotional enough to cry. In a fit of anger she'd thrown the picture across the room, causing parts of the frame to break off and smash. She left the broken frame and her broken memory alone before falling onto her bed, letting herself slip into the land of dreams.

The next day Anko woke up feeling a little less angry. She'd recovered her photo from the broken frame and put the wrecked frame in the bin, sliding the photo into a plain white frame that wasn't as brilliantly decorated as the previous one. She'd placed it back onto her cabinet and then got dressed, heading out of her apartment ten minutes later to head towards the hospital. She'd wanted to check up on Kakashi, someone who hopefully didn't hate her yet. He was supposed to be let out tomorrow, so she'd wanted to see him quickly today whilst he was still resting.

She turned a corner, heading along the road that led to the hospital when suddenly shouts erupted from the building. Anko broke into a sprint, worry flooding her mind. "_What if it's Kakashi?"_ was her immediate thought. She didn't want to lose another friend. Please let it be someone else, **anyone** else. Anko burst through the hospital's entrance, running past a woman shouting at her that she couldn't go past there without an appointment, but she didn't care. She ran to the hallway Kakashi's room was on, and her heart almost stopped. There was a crowd of people outside his room. It _was_ him! She wanted to cry right then, but she was stronger than that. She ran up to the person nearest to her and pulled them away, dreading the answer she would receive to her question.

"What happened!" she cried. They looked at her despairingly.

"It's Kakashi! He's gone!" the person cried. Anko's face was the very picture of shock, and then it turned to disbelief. She left the person and pushed her way past the rest of the people, ignoring that one of them was Kurenai, and forced her way to the front. She finally got through, falling into Kakashi's room. She looked around. The room was empty.

* * *

Thank you **Ryunn Kazan**, **NinjaSheik**, **ankofan**, **Kise M**, and **Taichi09** for the reviews! They make me feel like the effort is all worth it. C:


	4. An Unexpected Visitor

There had been signs of a slight scuffle, meaning that Kakashi hadn't just gotten up and left but had been taken, but by who was the question. Kakashi was an important shinobi to the village, so a search party had been sent out to look for him minutes after his complete disappearance had been confirmed. Anko had disappeared off the scene as soon as she'd seen the empty room, loss welling up inside of her to the point she was unable to be around anyone without wanting to punch them to release her emotions.

Anko now slumped wearily against a wall, having been looking for Kakashi as well. She'd known that if she asked permission then she would have been told no. She wasn't a fool, so after having left the hospital she'd begun her own search. She'd started in the forest outside of Konoha, thinking that if someone had wanted to take him away then they would be fleeing, right? Anko was agile and had incredible reflexes. She was stealthy and had good speed, so she knew she'd have no problem catching up with the kidnapper, especially since they'd be carrying an extra load. After scouting the forests she'd returned to Konoha to look. The kidnapper had either escaped or was in the village now, meaning she would find them and get her friend back. The only thought she had on her mind was that Kakashi was supposed to have been released today, meaning he'd be on near enough top form. How could someone have kidnapped him so easily? They must be pretty damn powerful.

"Huff... huff..." she panted, noting an ANBU leap across the rooftops above her. She didn't know why she did it, but she moved into the shadows so the ANBU couldn't see her. She had no reason to hide. She was innocent, yet she'd done it anyway. After the ANBU had passed she moved off again, her tan coat flapping wildly at her heels as her light brown eyes scouted across Konoha. She wanted to find Kakashi before those damn ANBU. She had a passionate hate against them. Although they'd been the ones to find her on the beach in the Land of the Sea and take her to Konoha, that had been because they hadn't known who she was, only seeing her as a defenceless young girl, stranded on the islands beaches. Once they'd found out who her sensei had been their distrust and disliking towards her became easily apparent, and she'd even overheard one of them suggesting to the Hokage that they just kill her before she could grow to become a threat to the village. The Hokage had defended her right to life, but she had heard the uncertainty in his voice.

Her search so far was fruitless, not a single trace of evidence turning up as to where the copycat ninja was. She growled in frustration and angrily punched the wall she'd slumped against. She immediately regretted it, feeling a horrible pain in her fist as the wall fought back. It hadn't broken, but the impact had been enough to break her skin and allow blood to flow out. She sucked on the bleeding knuckles, feeling her own hot, luxurious blood run over her tongue. No matter how much she said she wasn't like her old sensei, she couldn't deny that she'd at least inherited his bloodlust. The rich texture and taste. It was exquisite, like no other. She got fired up just by thinking about people spilling that lovely crimson blood. Even right now, tasting her own blood she began to get pumped up again about finding Kakashi.

"Right..." she said, pulling her fist from her mouth. "If they haven't fled the village then they obviously want to be found... so where the hell would they go?" she wondered, her eyes drifting up in thought. That's when it hit her. She grinned, licking her lips to cleanse herself completely of her own blood. Her eyes had trailed up to find themselves staring at the four giant heads carved into the mountain behind Konoha, the Hokage Monument, and above that the few buildings on top of it.

"Hup!" Anko cried, swinging her body up to reach the final part up to the top of the Hokage Monument. She'd taken the hard way up there, wanting to avoid the steps so no one could see her and think to look up there before she could. She focused chakra into the soles of her feet as they came into contact with the hard stone and she went into a flat out sprint up the final fifty metres, leaving dust and bits of rocks spraying from beneath her relentless feet. She then pushed herself over forward so her hands grabbed onto the final edge, then she pushed her body over. She was up.

Anko had no time to rest. She quickly rolled and got to her feet then fell into the shadows of the Konoha Library. Could Kakashi be in there? No one was around so she quickly moved towards the entrance, pushing open the door and slipping inside. The sight that met her eyes was devastating. Her eyes widened, a look of horror crossing her visage as she beheld the catastrophe that was the Konoha Library. The tall bookcases had been blasted apart, books and loose pages scattered across the floors and all over every piece of furniture. Tables and chairs had been ripped to pieces and thrown carelessly towards the walls where dents were evident where they'd collided. The room looked sinister and dark, seeing as the windows had been covered up by curtains. It was as if Anko had walked into the lesser version of hell. A space had been cleared in the middle of the library, and Anko's eyes followed a trail of splattered blood from where she stood to the centre of the once glorious building.

"Kakashi!" she yelled, sprinting towards him. She ignored the destruction of the library, the loss and damage of the past and present of information, and went to her friend. He was lying in the complete centre of the room, eyes closed. He was covered in blood and had multiple wounds across his body, mainly slashes. Two metres before Kakashi lay the librarian of this building, a kunai protruding out of her chest. She was dead. Anko looked sorrowfully down at her as she passed, and quickly stopped to lean down and pull the kunai out. The kunai was bleeding with the woman's blood, and Anko didn't think to wipe it off before she advanced finally to Kakashi. She got down onto her knees, expression aghast as she checked to see if he was still breathing. She avoided touching the wounds and put her left hand over his chest whilst her right was on the ground still, holding the kunai. She lowered her left ear to his chest and could feel a very faint heartbeat. It was small, but it was there. Anko growled. She couldn't let him die. First of all she had to stop him from bleeding anymore. She was about to try and tear off parts of his clothing to dress his wounds when she heard a whisper. She looked over at Kakashi's face and saw his lips moving. She quickly moved her face nearer so she could hear him.

"What is it, Kakashi?" she asked urgently.

"Anko..." he mumbled weakly. She leaned in closer. "He's... here... in... Konoha..." he managed to say before he completely passed out. Anko wasn't sure when he'd wake up again. She began to panic ever so slightly. Who was "he?" She looked around, seeing no one except the dead librarian, and then looked back at Kakashi. She had to get him back to the hospital. She ignored the blood she'd managed to get all over her hands and arms from Kakashi's wounds and grit her teeth, lifting the kunai in her right hand to put it in one of her pouches. However she suddenly stopped with the feeling that someone was behind her. Was it the person Kakashi had been talking about? She turned her head and looked behind her, still holding the kunai (although a bit tighter now in defence) and sighed in relief. She saw two ANBU standing in the doorway of the library, looking around in what Anko could presume was shock and despair at the destruction of Konoha's precious library. Anko knew they could help her get Kakashi help, but they obviously saw more than a seventeen year old kunoichi trying to help her friend. They saw a murderer.

Their eyes locked on her behind their animal masks and they flinched. Anko realised why. Here she was, knelt over an unconscious Kakashi who was covered in blood. She had blood on her hands, and was holding a kunai also soaked in the crimson substance. Behind her was a dead librarian with a hole through her chest, caused by a kunai, something she was holding. Anko must have looked more than guilty.

"No! It wasn't me, I swear!" she yelled at them, but they seemed to have already made up their minds on who was guilty of this crime. Even if she hadn't been covered in blood and hadn't been holding a kunai she was sure they would've dubbed her guilty anyway, just for being next to Kakashi and the dead librarian. They'd do anything to finally get her locked away. Her,

"Orochimaru's student," the ANBU on the left growled, "you're coming with us." Anko looked at him with a disbelieving stare.

"I have a fucking name," she retorted, looking briefly back at Kakashi to check he was okay. He looked far from fine, but she was sure he would be alright for a minute or so whilst she tried to deal with these morons. "Now listen up! Kakashi's in a terrible state and he needs our help now!" she shouted back. She really hated ANBU, but she needed their help right now and they couldn't afford to have any petty fighting in case it became too late for Kakashi.

"Exactly, he needs _our_ help, not _yours. _You've done enough," the ANBU on the right said. Anko scowled. She couldn't believe they were being so stupid!

"Stop being jerks! Think rationally! And for the last time, I didn't do this! Kakashi's my friend!" she shouted. She took a threatening step forwards.

"Stop playing mind games. Now come with us quietly or we'll have to take you by force. Move away from Kakashi..." the ANBU continued with the threat in his voice noticeable. Anko was feeling so frustrated and angry. Why wouldn't they see that she was innocent? Or even if they wouldn't, why couldn't they put that aside for one second and just help save Kakashi? Anko blinked, and then flinched. One of the ANBU had disappeared. She felt a small gust of wind behind her and let out a horrified gasp before feeling a strong blow to the back of her head. She fell to the ground, an overwhelming dizziness and sense of fatigue hitting her in one moment. She bordered unconsciousness, but somehow managed to cling on. Her sight had gone fuzzy and she struggled to see, but she had to stay awake. She had to get away. She saw a shadow loom over her, and through her dizziness and fatigue she managed to swing a punch at the shadow. She heard a loud shout of pain as well as a satisfying crack as the shadow recoiled back, and Anko knew she'd managed to punch one of the ANBU and break his mask and nose. Stupid ANBU. Anko then choked on a scream as what felt like a foot connected with her head, and she finally passed out.

Anko woke up with a splitting headache. She cried out as a wave of pain hit her, and tried to clutch at her head but flinched when something cut into her wrists. She wearily opened her eyes, everything a blur at first, but soon found sharpness through the pain. She groaned and looked over her shoulder. Her wrists were handcuffed together by what she could only assume were chakra-draining cuffs, judging by her lack of strength.

"What's the meaning of this?" she managed to snarl out, taking a look around. She was surrounded by darkness, but could roughly make out the gleam of metal bars that kept her trapped in the room as her eyes adjusted to the gloomy lighting. She wondered why the hell she was behind bars, and then it hit her where she was. The ANBU had taken her to Konoha's prison! She growled. She'd only been helping Kakashi. She didn't deserve to be here! She slowly got to her feet, wincing as she felt a prickle in the left shoulder. However, the prickle didn't go away. She looked around, wondering why her curse seal was hurting her right now. Orochimaru couldn't be here, right? If he'd come into Konoha the ANBU would be on him in seconds, but then again, the ANBU were doing pretty crap at their duties lately so she wouldn't have been surprised if he'd gotten past them. She considered her situation and feelings. Maybe the curse seal was reacting to her feelings... her anger...

Once on her feet she walked over to the metal bars and slid her eyes to the left and right, looking down the hall for someone. She couldn't grip the bars because her hands were cuffed, but she could kick them. She took two steps back and then did a frontal kick on the bars, hoping to bend them enough to be able to break them. In her weakened state all she received was a horrible pain in her foot, and she started to hop as tears met her eyes. Without the use of her arms she found it hard to keep her balance and soon toppled over, falling back to the floor. Her body roughly hit the cold stone ground and she felt a spike of pain from her cursed seal as she got angrier. She jumped back to her feet, swaying as she got her balance, and then she ran at the bars. She slammed her body up against it and shouted to try and get someone to let her out.

"HEY! LET ME OUT!" she screamed, trying to attract anyone's attention so she could get out. She hated prison already. She hated the reason that she was in here even more, because there was no reason! She ignored the pain now, continually kicking the bars again and again in the hopes of breaking out, but the handcuffs made it bloody hard.

"I'M INNOCENT! LET ME OUT, GODDAMMIT!" she continued to scream, keeping up her barrage against the bars. She could feel her energy slipping away, but still she kept up her racket. After all, when kids made loads of noise outside her apartment she got so annoyed to the point she'd go out there and nearly choke the kids to death. The whole hall rattled and echoed with clangs and bangs of her barrage, her screams travelling just as far. At one point she even felt a spike in her energy, and hit the bars even harder than before. She was demanding attention, and she would get it no matter what. However the handcuffs were making it really hard, and soon she had to rest for a few minutes.

Her feet ached and her voice was sore, and her neck was hurting like hell. She felt like her body was on fire and as she slumped against one of the walls in her cell she finally heard the creak of the door in the hallway opening. Anko wearily made her way back to the bars and looked at who was coming, eager to be let out so she could rest, or at least have these handcuffs taken off. They were making her hands sore and she didn't appreciate having her chakra drained from her.

"Who's there?" she asked, her tone cold. She couldn't see who had come in, even after straining her neck to try and see. A gasp suddenly left her lips, and she fell to the ground, head hitting the metal bars. She saw stars, but clung to consciousness. She strained against her handcuffs, trying with all her might to let her hand reach her neck where so much pain was radiating from. Perspiration rolled down her face and she was breathing deeply, not only from exhaustion but from trying to deal with this pain. Pain like this... it wasn't like the prickling before. Only one thing could make her curse seal hurt this much.

"My, my, I was wondering if you'd ever stop making so much noise," sounded a voice from above Anko. She looked up from the ground where she'd been focusing her thoughts on to try and block out the pain and flinched. His voice... it was so sly, so cocky, so manipulative. A voice like that could only belong to one person.

"Wh- what?" she stuttered upon seeing who had talked to her. It wasn't who she thought it was, merely a brown-haired Chūnin.

_She walked into the small restaurant with Iruka, partly blinded by the many lights from the lanterns. After her eyes adjusted she glanced around. There were couples everywhere, love literally radiating off everyone. Then her eyes fell upon a single man sitting near the back, alone by his table. She felt uneasy just looking at him. She then felt Iruka's hand come around her own and she pulled her gaze away, allowing herself to put all of her attention back onto her date._

"You were at that restaurant!" she exclaimed, remembering him now. Looking at him again now she felt uneasy, but if he wasn't Orochimaru then who was he? Her puzzled expression gave a lot away.

"Looks can be deceiving, my dear. A simple Transformation Technique was all I needed to fool most of this pathetic village," the man said. Anko flinched at the way he'd addressed her.

_Happy Birthday, my dear Anko._

_Well done, my dear._

_Show me how well you've come on with your Jutsu, my dear Anko._

_Looks can be deceiving, my dear._

Memories flooded back to her, and her eyes shot to the man's own. A Transformation Technique... She didn't doubt he'd do that, so as her own optics stared into this man's she felt his black soul through those hypnotic, golden irises and she knew... she knew that she was staring at her old sensei, Orochimaru.

"It is you..." she whispered. All the pain, anger, despair, loss, hurt, and betrayal she'd ever felt since that day he'd abandoned her surged through her, causing her curse seal to react painfully, but she ignored it and managed to stagger to her feet. She pressed her body up against the bars, glowering at Orochimaru, or at least the body he hid beneath, and snarled.

"This village isn't pathetic," she growled. Orochimaru smirked, and although he looked different, Anko could always recognise his signature smirk.

"Anko, Anko, Anko... This village has shown you nothing but distrust and hate, and they've locked you up in their petty prison when you've done nothing wrong, all because I once taught you..." he said, slyly working his way around Anko's emotions like he always did. She could tell he was doing this, yet she couldn't do anything to stop him speaking, her arms held behind her. His words were affecting her, yet not so much. She thought it was probably because she was staring at some other man's body and not her sensei's own. But as soon as she thought about that she regretted it. Orochimaru could always read her like a book.

Anko frowned unhappily. She really didn't want to admit it, but he was right in a way. She could see their distrust and she hated it so much. She hated that she was represented by Orochimaru. When it came to her, no one cared what she did herself. They associated her with Orochimaru and judged her on what he'd done, not what she'd ever done. Whilst she agreed with what he said, she hated the part at the end.

"You didn't teach me... you used me," she said, her words dripping in venom. Orochimaru was suddenly right in front of her. She recoiled, but was then paralysed in place when he dropped the Transformation Technique. Her eyes widened as Orochimaru's true face came up close to hers, not being stopped by the bars. His body just melted through, the bars left undamaged yet Orochimaru not being stopped by the physical barrier. He was then in the prison cell with Anko, the purple-haired kunoichi backing up now. She'd spent so much energy in trying to kick down the cell door whilst being drained by the handcuffs that she was only just managing to keep conscious. She had no energy to fight her old sensei, despite how much she wanted to kill him. All she could do was listen to him.

Anko was soon up against the back wall and Orochimaru was free to do as he pleased. He gave Anko a sympathetic smile, causing her to look at him in disgust, and then reached out. Anko looked at his advancing hand in shock, afraid of what he was going to do. She couldn't take any more memories coming to the surface. It was all too painful. But then his hand was brushing her cheek, and his touch sent a shiver down her spine. She looked into his deep, golden eyes and became trapped in their hypnotising trance as he continued to lightly brush her cheek, just like old times.

"You know," Orochimaru said casually, "you were trying to break through that cell door for exactly five hours and forty two minutes." Anko was still breathing deeply, and gasped at that remark. Five hours? How was that possible? The time really had slipped by quickly, but she wondered how the hell she was still standing after five hours of all that?

"How?" she asked breathlessly, and flinched as Orochimaru's hand slipped down from her cheek to her neck. She felt pain as his pale fingers ran over where his fangs had once been, cursing her for the rest of her life. She felt a boiling hate rise, but it was quelled when he spoke to her again.

"I'll show you how, my dear," he said, and as Orochimaru withdrew his hand from her neck she gulped, scared of what had happened. Orochimaru brought up a fragment of glass from his clothing and held it up for Anko to look into. She didn't want to look, scared of what she'd see, but she soon raised her pupil-less eyes to stare into her reflection. She gasped even louder than before, her body going stiff with shock.

"You bastard! What have you done!" she managed to yell, turning her head to the right to get a better look at her face. The whole left side of her face was covered in black markings, and as she moved her tan coat down and out of the way, she found where they'd originated from. Her curse seal had spread out across her body, activated for the first time since she'd gotten it.

"What have _I_ done? It's what _you've_ done, my dear. Using all your rage and hatred you pounded relentlessly against those bars and activated the curse seal sub-consciously. If you hadn't been wearing those handcuffs and those bars hadn't been infused with chakra then they would have snapped as easily as twigs. I returned to Konoha this week to check up on how you were doing, and my dear, I've been very impressed," he said. Although it sounded like simple praise, even now he was still working on Anko's emotions. She blinked, staring at her old sensei. She'd managed to impress him? She felt a shameful sense of pride at that remark, the kind of childish pride she'd once felt every time she'd successfully pleased her sensei all those years ago.

_I've impressed my sensei_ she thought. No. _I've impressed my old sensei. _That was the truth of it. Her old sensei, Orochimaru, an S class criminal, an enemy of the Hidden Leaf Village and the man she'd sworn to kill. She closed her eyes, blocking out Orochimaru for a second, and focused on the sheer power she was capable of taking from her curse seal that Orochimaru had given her. Without knowing it the black marks began to spread across her face a little more, now covering her whole face but not her whole body. At this development Orochimaru's face lit up with a sadistic glee. Why, she was progressing at her own will, and with the speed she had picked it up he was beginning to think that maybe he did want her back after all.

"Orochimaru..." she said, feeling the power running through her. "I'm going to kill you with the power you've given me!" she shouted, eyes opening. This power made her feel sick. She didn't want to be using it because it was a part of him, not her. It was the mark that she'd never escape Orochimaru, and so long as she had it on her neck she knew she would always have a part of him in her. She would kill him now, she had to. She had to prove to the Leaf Village that she wasn't like him, and then they might accept her. She wasn't like him no matter what they said, but how was she proving that to herself by using the dark power Orochimaru himself had given her?

There was a clanking snap sound as pieces of metal hit the floor and Anko's hands finally came around from her back to her front again. She'd finally rid herself of those stupid chakra-draining handcuffs, and although her wrists were sore and bleeding from continuously resisting the metal she flexed them and felt satisfied that she'd been able to have enough power to escape. Orochimaru was grinning sadistically, and Anko felt repulsed. She aimed a punch at his head which he easily dodged by sidestepping to his right, but she was ready. She pushed her body weight onto her right leg and fell sideways, her right hand landing on the ground as she twisted her body, her left leg swinging around to hit Orochimaru. He was surprised at her quick improvisation and only managed to dodge by jumping swiftly backwards. He thought she might actually have hit him if she wasn't so fatigued from her efforts of the last load of hours.

Anko's kick failed so she carried through and was soon up on her feet again. She looked around for Orochimaru but he'd gone, and only knew where he was when she felt that slight rustle of wind. She attempted to elbow him, but his right hand caught her elbow and twisted it over her head. He applied pressure and she was forced to submit as a jolt of pain was sent through her body. She crumpled to the ground and he stood above her, still holding onto her elbow. Anko grunted.

"Anko, why do you think you were my only student?" he asked. Anko was taken aback at such an unexpected question. She didn't answer, and let Orochimaru do that for her.

"I _chose you _as my student, Anko," he said, and Anko was put into stunned silence. "Whilst the other Jōnin of the village were told who they were to take on, I found myself attracted to you. You see, I wasn't obligated to taking on students of my own, but, how do you put it, when I saw you I felt something. Heh, now it's your turn to try and answer. Why do you think I chose to take you on as my student?" he asked. Anko's tongue tasted insults, but she swallowed them and replied bitterly.

"So you could toy with my emotions and use me for your sick experiments? And then cast me aside like trash?" she responded, grunting as Orochimaru laughed. His cruel, cold laughter, it made her skin tingle.

"Of course not, my dear; I chose you because I saw a piece of myself in you," he said simply, and Anko's entire resistance shattered. Her body went limp and Orochimaru finally let go of her elbow with a smirk as Anko collapsed to the floor, the Snake Sannin's words sinking into her mind. Her eyes were wide open, her brain trying to reject his words, but he'd already gotten to her. Orochimaru's smirk grew, and he knew he had her.

"No... that can't be true..." she mumbled weakly. "I'm not like you..." she tried to resist his words, but for some reason no matter how hard she tried to reject those thoughts they got around her resistances and planted themselves in her mind, trying to make her believe them. _Could I be... like him? _She clutched at her head with her hands, feeling like she was going mad just by thinking these thoughts.

"But, my dear Anko, you are, no matter how much you resist it. Think about it, my student," he started, only to be interrupted by Anko.

"I'm not your student anymore..." she growled. Orochimaru glowered down at her.

"It's rude to interrupt other people when they're talking. It seems being away from me for so long has made you quite disobedient," he said, and Anko flinched. She didn't like the way he scolded her. It reminded her too much of the past, when she would do something wrong and he'd tell her off, but then encourage her further to learn what they'd been focusing on. "But as I was saying..." he crouched down and pulled Anko's head up with his hand, causing her distressed eyes to stare into his own golden orbs. His fingers moved across her skin until he was holding her chin up with only his thumb and index finger. Anko tried to pull her head back but his grip was like an iron lock and she couldn't escape. She had no choice but to gaze into his eyes and reluctantly get lost in them.

"We both lost our parents when we were younger," he said, causing Anko to receive a stab of pain to her heart. Why was he bringing this up? It caused her nothing but grief, but at the same time she wondered if Orochimaru felt that grief too? No, he was heartless, she couldn't think like that. "And I could see that you'd grow up to care only for yourself," he said with a smirk. Anko knew that wasn't true.

"That's a lie! I care for lots of people. Kakashi, Kurenai... Iruka..." she said, remembering how she'd driven him away with her weird actions. However that didn't mean she didn't care for him.

"And look where that's ended you. Iruka thinks you're crazy, Kakashi's in a coma and this Kurenai person probably won't be your friend for much longer when she finds out it was you standing by a dying Kakashi with his blood on your hands," he said. Why was he so cruel? Anko wanted to scream at him, tell him he was wrong, but inside she knew her friends probably hated her by now, if they'd liked her at all before. "And why should you care about them if they don't care about you? If you only cared about yourself none of them would have gotten hurt, and you wouldn't be in this prison right now." He had a point.

"But Kakashi wouldn't be in this mess if _your _snake hadn't bitten him!" she said, the memory coming back to her. Orochimaru chuckled.

"Oh, so you did get my gift," he mused, although Anko was sure he'd already known she'd received it. "How did you like it?" he asked, and Anko scoffed.

"You're such a bastard. He could have died!" she retorted. Orochimaru gave her a disapproving stare.

"Manners, my dear. But what do you care if he dies?" he asked.

"He's my friend," Anko spat back.

"What kind of a friend would let him get involved in all of this?" he said, his twisted logic entering her mind. Anko hadn't gotten Kakashi involved at all, yet Orochimaru was slyly putting the fact into her mind that somehow she had. Anko tried to pull back from Orochimaru again but his grip was just as strong as before.

"You don't have a life in Konoha. They will never accept you, all because you were my student. Is that fair?" he asked, drawing near to the end of his visit. Anko eyed Orochimaru, not with hate, not with love. She just stared.

"... No," she finally answered. Orochimaru nodded.

"They've locked you up, and do you think they're going to pass fair judgement on you? You're going to be condemned to this prison cell or killed for the death and harm of people you didn't even touch. Is that fair?" he continued.

"... No," she said again. It wasn't fair. He was right, and it pained her to admit it. If only she hadn't been seen by those ANBU, she wouldn't be in this prison and she wouldn't be talking to Orochimaru. The thought hit her like a train. She was talking to Orochimaru.

"I missed you," she blurted out, all the heartbreak she'd ever had filling her words. It just slipped out. She didn't mean to say it. Orochimaru finally released her and she sat back with surprise. But she had said it and now a triumphant smile had broke out across Orochimaru's face. Anko couldn't believe she'd said those words, and before she knew it her emotions were spilling out.

"You left me! You abandoned me and left me all alone! Konoha found me and took me back, but you don't know how it felt! You don't know about the countless times I cried myself to sleep; the countless times I haven't had any sleep. Every day, because of you, people look at me with so much distrust and hate. It's horrible! The pain, the hurt, I felt it all because of you. And it's not just them! You were the most amazing person in the world and I couldn't think of ever living a day without you, and to just toss me aside... it's heartbreaking! You hurt me so much, because just leaving me would never make me forget you! I hated you not being there, even though I knew that you were a heartless, evil man. The residents, ANBU, even the Hokage told me that you weren't to be trusted anymore. The Hokage says he thinks you're still a good person deep inside, and I feel the same way. I wanted to see you again, even though you hurt me. But why did you do it! I don't get it, because I've looked up to you more than anyone in the world, and... you left me," she cried out to him. Midway through she'd started to cry, tears leaking down her cheeks as she poured her heart out to Orochimaru. He'd raised an eyebrow as he heard the last bit. He'd wiped her memory so she'd have no memory of saying the words, but "I've looked up to you more than anyone in the world" had now been said more than once. Orochimaru stood up and held out a hand to Anko. She blinked, wiping away her tears.

"Then come with me," he said. Anko frowned slightly.

"What?" she asked, sniffing.

"I told you, I came to check up on you. You've proven yourself to me; showed me hatred, showed me power, showed me that you've matured since you were a child. If you come with me we can perfect your skills and I can teach you even more. You can be my student again," he said with that sly smile. His offer hung in the air, and Anko gazed up at him. She'd hated him for so long, cursed him, and sworn that she would kill the man, but it seemed that after this long talk of theirs so much had changed. She had nothing, and he was offering her everything. She had another chance to prove herself to her sensei, and for a moment she saw her young self spring at the chance, eagerly reaching out and taking his hand with a grin upon her face, but she wasn't her naive, young self anymore. Orochimaru noted her hesitation.

"And anyway, Konoha don't want you. They'll put you to death. I'm the only person that's ever accepted you and ever will. I want you, Anko," he said, causing Anko to flinch with the harshness yet truthfulness of his words. She felt her hand reach out, her fingertips lightly brushing Orochimaru's own, and then she brought it back.

"But you hurt me," she said, her hurt-filled eyes looking into his hypnotic golden irises. She shook her head, and felt his smirk bore down on her.

"I like your stubbornness, Anko. We are so alike, it almost hurts to see you turn me away, but I'm not going to worry. Have faith in your pathetic village for now, and after they've decided your fate I'll come and visit you again. How's that sound? I bet you're secretly excited. I know I am," he said, letting her take in his words. Then turned around and walked back through the bars. His ebony hair swished behind him, and Anko was almost sad to see him go, something she didn't want to feel right now. He made hand seals and was engulfed in a cloud of smoke. When it dispersed Orochimaru looked like the brown-haired Chūnin again, and he looked for a final time back at Anko who had shuffled up against the back wall of the prison cell.

"I removed the chakra from these bars, so they're not as strong as they were before. You hit them so hard for so long that I think if you even touch them now they'll break," he said. He shrugged slightly. "Oh, and you'll pass out after you retract your curse seal. I think that would be good, seeing as I knocked out the shinobi in the other room. They should be waking up any time now, so they'll rush in here to check on you very soon. If you're unconscious they won't think you had anything to do with me, and it would be in your best interest to not let them know you can now use your curse seal. Not that it matters anyway," he chuckled. He then raised his hand and waved it. "Goodbye for now, my dear," he said with his manipulative smile, and then he turned and walked out of the door he'd entered in.

After he was gone Anko continued to feel on edge. She was shaking, messed up from the time she'd just spent talking to Orochimaru. Despite the boost in power from the curse seal she felt knackered. She considered telling the Hokage that Orochimaru had just visited her, thinking that he might not declare that they put her to death if she told them all he'd said, but from all the hate she'd received from the village she really doubted that would change their minds. The Hokage was a good man, and he would vouch for her life and to not have her put in prison, having been Orochimaru's teacher after all, but the elders and ANBU and possibly every other person in the village would vote to have her locked up in prison or killed. She had to have faith though, but in the darkness of her cell it was hard to cling on to hope.

"Fuck," she muttered, and then shut her eyes. She focused on making the curse seal return back to its original shape as the three tomoe on her neck, and soon began to feel all her power slip away. She realised that the only reason she had been conscious was because of the curse seal, because although she'd gained power and it had helped her accomplish the impossible for her without it, the strain on her body was way too much. She realised that after the curse seal had returned to normal, because she suddenly felt like her body was on fire before she passed out.

In the other room the shinobi had finally come to and were running around frantically, checking up on the prisoners. It seemed no one had done anything suspicious and no one had escaped. They'd checked up on all of the prisoners using the cameras planted around the prison, except for one. Three shinobi had been sent to Anko's cell, and as they walked up to it they looked in. They saw Anko at the end, sleeping, or at least they thought she was sleeping. However she was jerking a bit, as if plagued by nightmares, and was sweating considerably.

"I'll go check and see if she's okay," one of the shinobi said, and the other two laughed.

"Why? She's Orochimaru's student. We don't need to. She'll be dead by the end of the month anyway," the second shinobi said.

"Huh? Why?" asked the first. The third answered.

"Well there are more than enough votes around here saying she should just be killed. After all, she did kill that librarian and put Kakashi in a coma. We can't have that running around Konoha," he said, looking disdainfully at Anko.

"You believe that?" the first shinobi asked. The third blinked.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I? The ANBU said it so it's true, and who do you think knocked us out? It must be Orochimaru! He's working with Anko! Or... something. I don't trust her, anyway," he said. The first shinobi sighed, and got out a key.

"I don't care. Even if it was Orochimaru who knocked us out then he would have taken her, wouldn't he? And plus, don't be stupid. It was that brown-haired Chūnin who got us, not Orochimaru. If Orochimaru was in the village then that spells big trouble for us, but he's not, so no worries," he said, reassured by his own words. Then he held out the key and jammed it into the lock of Anko's cell. That was when the first shinobi cried out. The lock broke apart as soon as he touched it, pieces of metal crashing to the ground, and that caused a chain reaction. The bars attached to it broke apart too, cascading to the ground, and then the other bars followed in its footsteps, shattering and falling until there weren't any bars left imprisoning Anko anymore.

The three shinobi looked around in shock. So the brown-haired Chūnin had paid a visit to Anko and weakened the bars enough that they broke upon a single touch. What else had he done?

"Alright, alright, I believe you now!" the first shinobi cried to his comrades, the three of them entering the cell. They looked around, checking for suspicious things.

"Hey, look at this," the second said, pointing to the broken handcuffs on the ground. They picked them up and looked at the broken pieces.

"These were chakra-draining cuffs! How did she escape? What the hell happened?" the third shinobi exclaimed. They looked over at Anko, still unconscious.

"I don't know," the second said, "but we've got to do something about this girl. Move her to another cell! I'm calling Lord Hokage!"

"Right!" the other two shinobi said in unison, and got to work.

* * *

Thank you **Ryunn Kazan**, **NinjaSheik**, and **Kise M** for the reviews! And Happy New Year to you all! :D x


	5. The Dark Dimension

Anko was falling. A pitch black surrounded her body but Anko herself was clear as day. Her eyes slowly opened and she felt her body floating downwards. Her arms reached out around her but she could grab nothing to stop her descent, and rather than a sense of panic entering her system she was merely curious and open-minded to it all, instead allowing her body to fall as her arms moved around beside her. She turned her head both ways and observed the darkness that had ensnared her, and tried to reach out to touch it, but again could find nothing. She wondered how long she'd be falling, and when she'd hit the bottom. But what was the bottom? And where was she? It was almost blissful, the peace of falling in the darkness, with no worries and no pain, but all things had to come to an end.

Anko felt her body halt, although she hadn't reached a physical barrier of any kind. She merely floated on the spot, lying in mid air. She blinked, and then twisted her body so that she was floating in a standing position, although her feet drooped down, not actually stood on anything. Anko still had her arms out, as this was more comfortable than having them by her side. Suddenly she dropped down. It was barely a thirty centimetre drop, but as soon as she touched the ground the placid relaxation she'd previously felt was snatched away from her, normal emotions coming back. She felt slightly fearful of where she was, and felt the overwhelming presence of the darkness uncomfortable. It made her skin tingle somewhat, and she didn't like it. Her arms had shot up straight as she'd hit the ground, keeping her balanced on the darkness, but then they'd lowered to her side. She still didn't seem to be standing on anything, but her feet were definitely standing on something solid because as she took a step forwards it was as if she were walking across anything she normally would, be it the streets of Konoha or the carpet of her apartment.

Anko looked around herself. She couldn't see anything at all except the haunting darkness. She knew if she let her guard for even a second it would crush her. She squinted when she thought she saw something out in the blackness. She took a step forward and soon made out the shape of a small human in the distance, if there was such a thing as distance in this strange universe; this void seemed to be never ending. She felt a slight panic, but then hope that maybe the human could help her. She started to run towards it, feeling the invisible ground beneath her feet as she made a dash before the human could disappear, but then she felt all her senses change. After the third stride she felt as if she'd stepped out of her seventeen year old body and back into something less, something... younger. She continued her run, despite the way she'd dropped in height and her senses had decreased in performance from normal, although that wasn't so noticeable seeing as she could only hear the pounding of her footsteps, otherwise surrounded by darkness with no smell in the air; she was also clothed differently now, dropping the long coat and mesh beneath, and reversing back to the loose baggy top and trousers she'd once worn a long time ago.

"Huh?" Anko said, her run slowing to a walk as she approached the human. Soon she stopped, staring at the figure around ten metres in front of her. She cocked her head to the side, confusion welling up inside of her. What was this? Was someone playing a trick on her? She then flinched when the figure appeared a metre in front of her, not even having moved from its original position. Anko's eyes raked up and down the person in front of her, a look of shock and horror crossing her face. She was staring at her younger self, merely eleven years old. Her head was hung low, face in shadow, but her clothes were that of which she'd worn in the Land of the Sea, and her hair was so much shorter than it was now in her teenage years. But that wasn't right. She was here right now, so what was this reflection in front of her?

"Who are you?" she asked. Anko was the obvious answer, but at the same time, she couldn't be her. Anko then realised that she was the same height as the younger version of herself. She'd grown over the years, so this couldn't be possible. She looked down and gasped. She saw the clothes she was wearing, saw her little hands which then moved up to her face. She ran it over her cheeks and other facial features and couldn't believe it. She was eleven again! She was brought back to the copy in front of her when a dark, demonic chuckle emitted from it. Anko stared as the copy's body jerked up and down as more cruel laughter rung from it. Then the copy of her looked sharply up, the terrifying expression on its face paralysing Anko in place. She looked on as the darker version of her began to move. It walked around her once, its cold fingers moving through her hair before sliding down to her neck. It touched her curse seal and Anko flinched at the pain, her body free of the paralysis as her hand shot up to grab it.

"Heheheheheh," the copy chuckled, finishing its loop before standing back in its original position. Her chuckle was dark and frightening. Anko knew this couldn't be her. "I already embraced the dark power of that seal, the gift _he_ gave us," the dark copy stated. Anko frowned sharply. She looked at the manipulative, sly smirk of her clone. It reminded her of her sensei, but it was bone-chilling to see the smirk on her own face. She shook her head.

"It's... not a gift, it's a curse, as the name implies," she growled hand still on the three tomoe. "I don't want the dark power of it. It'll only stop me from doing what's right; it'll cloud my actions, encourage my negative emotions, like anger and hate. I don't want that," she said, looking momentarily away from the clone. Big mistake. Suddenly a hand was at her throat and she was lifted into the air. Anko let out a choking gasp, looking down at her copy that had so effortlessly lifted her into the air. She saw why immediately. The tar markings had covered her whole face and hands, and she assumed the rest of her body too beneath the casual clothing. The clone smirked up at her.

"You're not right or wrong, merely denying facts. You've already used its unlimited supply of power, and you _liked it._ Don't lie to me, because you **are me. **I **am you.** I know everything about you, and you know everything about me," she said. Anko was confused. She didn't know anything about this darker version of herself, only that it was evil, and definitely not her.

"Heh, and what actions will it be clouding? What **good** actions does the poor little Anko think will be clouded? You're not _good,_" the copy spat, "You were never made for _good. _Good is for the weak, and we're not weak," it stated as if by a matter of fact. Anko tried to struggle against the copy's hand but it only tightened, cutting off her air supply quicker. The copy sneered at her.

"Embrace the anger and hate. Go on! Do it!" the copy almost screamed at her. Anko saw black at the edges of her vision. She knew she was going to pass out soon. "Anger and hate has never left us!" the copy shouted. "It will always be a part of us! No matter how good you've ever felt, no matter how _righteous _or _heroic_ you've ever been feeling!" the copy shouted more, the words rolling off her tongue as if they were poison. "_Hatred _and _anger_ have always resided in us, growing bigger every time something bad happened to us, every time someone looked down on us, thinking themselves _better_ than us! Well, do you know what? They are just goddamn jealous because _they _weren't chosen by the great Orochimaru-sama to train under him," the copy sneered, finally letting go of Anko. She fell to the ground, coughing and spluttering. She took deep breaths of air in, trying to steady herself. She fought back the darkness that had entered her vision and looked up at the copy who was smirking down at her. Anko had known that the copy would bring up Orochimaru at some point, but not in this way. She'd thought it would be said slyly, like Orochimaru did when he tried to manipulate her, but this copy was just saying it so bluntly, praising her old sensei out loud. She guessed that was part of her own trait, just being so loud and boisterous.

"Look at us! We could be huge! We could be strong! We could be **monsters,**" the copy snarled, a dangerous look in her eye. "We were so damn lucky, hand-picked by Orochimaru-sama himself to learn everything he had to offer to us. He taught us his own techniques and then gave us **more!**" the copy shouted to the darkness, throwing her arms outwards as if welcoming the darkness in to her. The tar markings on the copy's skin blended in with the darkness around them, making the copy look even more terrifying. Anko shuddered.

"He didn't give us more!" she shouted back, then stopped herself. Not us, her. That copy wasn't a part of her. "He cursed me! He used me! He inflicted so much pain on me and then left me, tossed me aside like trash! He... he doesn't deserve me," she said, her voice trailing off to a mumble. The copy smirked even more.

"See! Now we're making progress. He doesn't _deserve_ you does he? He doesn't deserve to have someone as talented as us, right? He used us, but we got over that and became even stronger, without him. He doesn't _deserve_ us, right?" the copy sneered, now bending down and coming up close to Anko.

"... Right," she replied. The copy punched her in the face, grazing her cheek. Anko recoiled.

"WRONG. You're becoming selfish, and I love it! You're embracing a part of me, a part of us, and that's great progress, but do you know what? What you think is a curse, some terrible pain he inflicted on you, in the greatest gift he could have given you. You just don't get it. Orochimaru-sama is the greatest ninja of them all, the strongest, most powerful ninja who cannot be defeated, _ever. _We should be bowing down at his feet, begging him to take us back, embracing the power he gave us and proving to him we're not worthless!" she said, drilling her dark words into Anko's mind. Anko was getting sick of this now. She hated the way this bloody copy was just hitting her about and shouting at her until she responded, and then she'd get hit again. Anger bubbled up inside her.

"A gift, a curse, so what. I don't care anymore," Anko growled, throwing aside all her morals. "But don't you dare touch me again or else," she threatened. She'd teach this cocky little copy a lesson by beating the crap out of it. She watched the copy come up even closer to her.

"Or what?" she spat, causing spittle to hit Anko's face. She then went to hit Anko around the face. Anko's anger spiked, and suddenly it was the copy being lifted into the air by Anko, her hand around its throat and the copy's hand stopped mid-hit by Anko's other hand. The bridge of Anko's nose twitched in anger as the curse seal spread across her body, giving her unimaginable power. She smirked up at the copy, although hatred blazed in her eyes. She'd been provoked, and she'd responded. The copy sneered down at her.

"There we go; you're finally embracing the darkness in your heart! Heh heh," the copy said, but was then cut off as Anko gripped its throat tighter. The copy was being choked of air, yet for some reason it still had no problem talking to Anko, as if her hand wasn't even choking it. "This is so much better, isn't it? You feel the pleasure and exhilaration of having so much power, and the hatred and anger is what fuels it. You want more!" the copy stated, not even asking it as a question. Anko snarled at the copy. She wasn't going to admit it anytime soon, but this power felt pretty damn amazing, however she was going to use it to destroy this pathetic copy and then maybe she'd be freed from the dark dimension. She wasn't going to use it for anything else. The copy laughed.

"I already told you once, I'm you. What you've been experiencing just now with me, that's what you're capable of. I am who you really are, hidden beneath a layer of despair and loneliness you feel because you haven't got Orochimaru-sama with you anymore. Come on, Anko. Fully embrace the darkness and you can have _everything_," the copy said, not working on Anko's rage anymore but simply trying to make her give in. Anko threatened to crush the copy's throat, hand closing in, but the copy wasn't going to just let itself be destroyed. "Don't try that," the copy warned. Anko did. She went to crush the copy's throat, but felt a hot pain in her arm before she could. Her hand released the copy, and then she felt a punch to her stomach. Anko went spiralling backwards, hitting the 'floor' and grinding to a halt. She thought she'd end up with a bruise at least, but the tar markings had already gathered around where she'd been hit and had eradicated any possible chance that she would end up with any bruise.

Anko saw her copy getting ready to fight, and she was happy to oblige. Anko felt her power surge and she stood up, running at the copy as she drew back her right fist. She reached the copy and threw the fist at the copy's head. The copy moved its left hand up quickly and caught the fist, throwing its own right at Anko. She caught the copy's fist and brought her leg up to knee the copy in the gut. The copy had already jumped off the ground though, and Anko was forced to let the copy's hand go as her arms moved up, moving with the copy as it jumped over her head. However after letting go of the copy's hand it moved and grabbed Anko's caught hand. The copy flipped in the air, landing behind Anko and with the power of both the copy's hands used its momentous strength to pull Anko off the ground using her arm and throw her over its own head and across the darkness. Anko was sent flying backwards; however she tilted her body and managed to land on her hands, pushing off them and then twisting and landing on her feet, skidding back a little.

The battle became a matter of whose hit would land first. The two engaged in Jutsu, however being the same their moves were always countered and dodged, as if they both knew what the other was going to do. They abandoned Jutsu and went into hand-to-hand combat, kicks and hits being thrown at one another, each one blocked and countered with another hit of their own. They didn't get near each other, the battle becoming a dance of hit, block, hit, block as they moved around the darkness. A layer of sweat encased both Anko's and the copy's bodies and they were breathing hard despite the power boost. The battle lasted what could be considered hours but was only thirty minutes. Finally the copy managed to punch Anko in the gut, sending her flying to the ground. She lay there, sprawled out as the copy stood above her.

"You can't beat me if you don't envelop yourself in hatred and anger, Anko. You have to want to kill me! You have to want to hurt me, tear me limb from limb, feel that aching bloodlust and attack with all you've got. There's no holding back here, Anko! You either fight... or you die!" the copy stated loudly, despite the tiredness it felt. The copy kicked Anko roughly in the side. "You're pathetic. No wonder Orochimaru abandoned us," it said, and it really did hit a nerve with that sentence. Anko's vision became a blur as she moved with extreme speed upwards, catching the copy's chin with an uppercut punch. She had forgotten all about energy, forgotten about the limitations of her body, her actions now fuelled completely by the anger and hatred that had consumed her entirely. She hated this copy with all her being, and her anger and bloodlust began to pour off her in waves as she dashed forwards, slamming the copy's stomach with punch after punch. She kneed the copy, punched every single inch of its body, and then let her anger flare before performing a roundhouse kick and sending the copy flying away from her. She had a feral snarl across her face, expression contorted with hatred and anger. She had lost herself to the emotions, given in to them, just as the copy had planned.

Lying beaten, bruised and bleeding on the floor was the copy of Anko, unable to stand. Its leg was bent in an awkward position, suggesting it was broken, and now it was Anko's turn to sneer down at it, however the copy was more than happy to have this happen. Despite the pummelling, the copy had a cruel smirk on its face.

"Now who's on the ground? You're pathetic," Anko said, quoting the copy. "We are more than good enough for Orochimaru-sama," she said, not even phased by the way she'd said 'we', meaning she accepted that they were one now. She'd also addressed Orochimaru with '-sama', something she hadn't done in five years. "Tch, I don't like to admit it, but I feel **great.** I guess you were right after all," she said, and watched the copy move its body into a sitting position, smirk still on its face.

"Heh, I'm you, I know what you want, what you **need. **Of course I was right. But you've defeated me. You're finally ready; about damn time. You've embraced the darkness in your heart, embraced who you truly are, and now we can be strong," the copy smirked, not even wincing as its broken leg was moved around for the copy to sit in a normal-looking position. Anko looked down at the copy, clenching her fists. "This darkness around us," the copy said, waving an arm to point at the blackness, "is all yours. Your darkness, your evil," the copy smirked, watching Anko look around in shock.

"But there's so much of it," she stated, looking around at the darkness. It completely enveloped this dimension with its cruel, sinister presence, and now Anko had found out that it was all of the darkness in her heart. That couldn't be right, could it?

"I know. I'm a part of your darkness," the copy said, and then suddenly its whole body shattered. Anko took a jolting step towards where the copy had broken, shocked, and felt the weird sensation she'd felt when running before. It was if she was stepping out of her own skin and into something new. Yet it was familiar.

Seventeen year old Anko stared at where the copy had disappeared, and then looked around at the darkness again as a haunting voice echoed around her, similar to her own, and Anko placed it on the shattered copy.

"And now the darkness shall finally rise to the surface and fully become a part of you," the voice rang out. Anko frowned sharply, a growl rising in her throat. She didn't understand at that moment, but went on guard as the darkness began to swirl around her. It was if it had turned into a hurricane and she was at the middle of it. She turned on the spot, looking all around herself at the swirling blackness. She came to halt and began to think urgently how to escape. What was happening? Suddenly the darkness came at her. She looked directly in front of herself as what looked like a mini twister came out of one of the 'walls' of darkness around her, aimed for her. Her mind told her to run. Her instincts told her to stay, and suddenly a raging torrent of darkness had hit her chest, right where her heart was. Her arms flew out beside her, expression screwing up in endurance as the tornado of darkness passed into her heart. She felt so much hatred flowing into her body, her whole resistance and caring self shattered as what the copy had described as her 'true self' came to the front. She felt the darkness spreading through her body, overwhelming her mind and taking her over, and she couldn't, or didn't do a thing about it.

It was as if the darkness that had surrounded them before was all being sucked into Anko, because as more and more of the darkness was swallowed up into her body light became visible behind it. The white broke out from behind the darkness, brightening the previously sinister area, but Anko wasn't aware of it, her eyes having slowly opened to only focus on the darkness shooting into her system. Soon the vortex died down and the final blast of darkness shot into Anko's chest. She jerked back and collapsed, falling onto her left knee with her right hand coming down and placing it as support onto the ground. She had been surrounded by black, but now she was completely surrounded by white, however she knew this wasn't the 'good' inside her like the black had been the 'bad' in her, merely a replacement now she'd embraced the darkness inside her heart.

Anko's face was shadowed, her body shaking slightly before going still. She felt at least a hundred times more powerful than before, dark, sinister thoughts going through her mind. This was who Orochimaru had wanted her to be, full of _hatred,_ hungry for _power._ A menacing chuckle came from her as a creepy smirk broke out across her face. She stood up, getting to her feet as she held out a hand. Her skin was still marked with the curse seal, but the power she felt was incredible. Her eyes were bulging slightly as she felt the power run through her. She'd never felt better. This power... she wanted more.

She looked up as the whiteness surrounding her faded away, revealing scenery. Grass poked up around Anko's feet and what was up was soon light blue sky, clouds drifting across the expanse above. She was in a meadow, although poles stuck out of the ground with dummies attached to them, targets on their chests. Anko watched with fascinated eyes as a younger version of herself jumped into the air, throwing three shuriken out at three of the dummies. They struck each individual target dead on the centre, causing a merit of applause to break out from someone standing beside the 11 year old Anko.

"Very good, my dear. You've been practising," Orochimaru commended, watching Anko land back on the ground and grin proudly.

"Yup. My aim's got to be as good as yours, right?" she said, and watched Orochimaru nod. The seventeen year old Anko now knew that this was a memory. She remembered training under Orochimaru, the countless exercises and practises she'd had to do. Her aim was something that her started off rough, but then excelled as quickly as you could believe. She was quite the quick learner, something Orochimaru had treasured in her. Anko noticed that they paid her no attention. Orochimaru definitely would have if he'd seen her, thinking it some kind of new Jutsu, but seeing as he didn't Anko could only assume she couldn't be seen or felt, and was only observing her memories.

The scene faded out, and Anko was then standing in a forest. She watched her younger self and Orochimaru dashing through the trees. She remembered the place being quite a while away from Konoha, but couldn't remember what the memory was about. Anko watched as suddenly the two body flickered from where they'd been moving. Anko seemed to body flicker with them, now watching as Orochimaru held a struggling man's arms behind his back whilst a younger Anko watched him with curious eyes.

"What're we capturing him for again, Orochimaru-sensei?" the little Anko asked. Orochimaru held onto the thrashing man as if it was nothing, only pausing to knock the man unconscious with a hit to the head after he'd bitten down on his pale fingers. However, Orochimaru still held the limp man up to Anko.

"Remember when I showed you a few of my little experiments, Anko?" he asked. The little Anko nodded. She'd seen a select few of his experiments; the ones that didn't involve Orochimaru killing innocent people to experiment on them. "This man saw some of my other experiments that I didn't want anyone to see, and he was on his way to tell the Hokage about them when I managed to cut him off. You see, he decided he would flee from Konoha to escape me, and I couldn't let him get away after seeing my precious experiments. So we've hunted him down," he explained. Anko got it now, and grinned at her sensei. She then looked shamefully down at the man.

"He shouldn't have broke into your lab, sensei. He'll get the right punishment, yeah?" she asked, and Orochimaru confirmed it by nodding. "So, do we lock him up in the Konoha prison? Put him under House Arrest? Wipe his memory? What?" she asked. Orochimaru smirked.

"We kill him," he said simply, and Anko gasped.

"But we don't need to do that!" she said, aghast. Why would Orochimaru want to kill him just because he saw his experiments?

"And you'll be the one to kill him, my dear," Orochimaru finished, and Anko stared at him as if he'd just asked her to sprout wings and fly. She couldn't kill a person. Sure, she'd threatened it before and had no problem fighting and knocking someone out, but to take another's life, and for such a small reason as this, it wasn't right to her. She frowned, looking unhappily at her sensei.

"I can't kill him," she said, looking ashamed. She had to disappointment her sensei this once, no matter how badly she didn't want to. Orochimaru shook his head, looking at Anko with disappointment.

"Now now, my dear, don't go saying things like that. Out in the Shinobi world, one must learn to take another's life or else there's will get taken by the one they refused to kill. You either kill or get killed, Anko. Now, I'm asking you again. **Kill this man,**" he demanded. Anko gulped. He'd sounded simply disappointed before, but with the last three words his tone struck fear into Anko's heart. She took a step back, eyes wide with fear, and shook her head.

"I... I can't!" Anko protested. The step, the refusal, it was all one big mistake. Suddenly Orochimaru's wrath was falling down on Anko, who cowered as her sensei took the man in one hand and walked towards her. She looked up at Orochimaru whose hand started to rise. "S- Sensei!" Anko cried, but he continued. His hand whipped around, slapping Anko across the face. Her cheek began to sting, and tears met her eyes as she looked slowly back at her sensei from the position he'd slapped it into. Her eyes were hurt, pleading him to tell her why he'd committed such an act. She was fearful, scared of Orochimaru and his fury. He had fire in his eyes as he then hissed at her.

"If you don't kill this man then _I _will kill _you, _Anko. It's kill or get killed, and as my student if you cannot take another's life then I have nothing more to teach you," he said, venom in his words. Anko crumbled. She didn't know what to do... but she did. She had to kill the man. She didn't want to lose her sensei no matter what, and she sure as hell knew she didn't want to get killed. But why would he even threaten her like that? Maybe it was a test, to see what she would do. Anko didn't know, but either way she didn't want to test her sensei, knowing full well what he was capable of, and so stepped forward. She wiped her tears away, steeling herself as she took a kunai out of her pocket. Orochimaru threw the man up against the tree, watching his body slump to the ground, and then stepped back and allowed Anko to get to him.

"He's all yours," he hissed, and after Anko had slowly passed him a sly smirk spread across his lips. Anko approached the unconscious man. It was an easy kill. All she had to do was run him through with her kunai, but she just couldn't do it. She couldn't kill this man. She closed her eyes, wishing it was all just a dream and she'd wake up to find Orochimaru waiting for her at the training fields where they'd train normally again, but it didn't happen. She was here, now, and had to kill this man. _I don't know what you saw, but it must be pretty important if Orochimaru-sensei wants you dead. I'm sorry_ she thought, and then she killed for the first time. She cried out as she stabbed the kunai into the bottom left of the man's gut, dragging the steel projectile upwards diagonally and through his body. She felt the sharp weapon cut through his flesh, spilling his blood all over his body. Three quarters of the way up her kunai found where his heart was and she pushed into it, twisting the kunai and altogether completely ending his life. She then pulled the kunai completely out of his body, not wanting to go all the way up now he was dead, and stepped back. Her eyes were wide. She'd just killed a man. She stared down at her hand. The kunai was completely bloodied, and the hand holding it was slightly bloody too. She couldn't bear to look at Orochimaru right now.

"Now taste his blood," she heard him hiss behind her, a sadistic glee in his voice. Anko was horrified. Do what! Wasn't it bad enough that she'd killed the man, and now he wanted her to taste the man's blood? "You'll love it," Orochimaru smirked. Anko frowned unhappily down at her kunai, and then brought it up to her lips. She didn't want another slap. Her tongue poked out and lightly dipped into the blood. She brought it back into her mouth, tasting the rich red substance. She felt sick, but not because she'd just tasted blood. Her tongue flicked back out, running along the edge of the kunai as she licked up all of his blood. No, she didn't feel sick because she'd tasted a man's blood; she felt sick because she'd _liked _the man's blood. Anko's bloody tongue slipped back into her mouth and she turned around to face Orochimaru, whose face was lit up with the sadism he felt. Anko didn't know what to say or feel, but her lips were stained with blood and rather than disappoint Orochimaru, he looked like the proudest man on the Earth.

The seventeen year old Anko's face had a cruel smirk on it. She remembered that day now. She'd killed her first ever man and it had been the hardest thing in the world to do. The mental conflict going on in her mind had been horrible, but in the end Orochimaru's will had won out and she'd killed him. Not just that but that day marked the first day she'd ever felt bloodlust, and she'd feel that for the rest of her life. Even now, standing here, the older Anko wanted to rip the kunai out of her younger self's grip and take the blood for herself. It really got her going. She licked her lips hungrily. Heh, she really did owe Orochimaru a lot. He'd given her so much, helped her grow, and the darkness in her heart pressed her, telling her he had never used her; that she wasn't a simple experiment, but so much more. It had been her fault that he'd left her. She'd lacked what he'd been looking for, but now everything was different. Oh how her mind had been twisted in the last few days. It really wasn't fair.

The scene changed once more. Now Anko was standing on top of the Hokage Monument with Orochimaru and her younger self. They were looking out at Konoha as the sun set below the horizon. Anko was smiling happily, enjoying the warmth that would soon slip away when Orochimaru spoke. Instantly the young Anko put her attention on him. The older Anko chuckled slightly at the naive and adoring nature with the pale Sannin she'd once had.

"Anko... Do you ever wish you could be more powerful?" he asked. Anko frowned a little.

"Sometimes... I guess... I mean, I want more power so I can be as strong as you, but I don't really obsess over it," she answered, thinking. Orochimaru turned towards her, his expression slightly disappointed. Anko suddenly felt worry, thinking she'd said something wrong.

"How simple," Orochimaru then said. "No, I'm talking about much more. I'm talking about real power, the flowing energy that can make you better than everyone else. I want to be more powerful than anyone in the village," he said.

"You already are the strongest person in the village!" Anko piped up. "Even Lord Hokage isn't as strong as you!" she said, her tone defensive over her sensei. Orochimaru chuckled, amused.

"Yes. But it's not just that. I want to be stronger than more than just this village. You see, that used to be my goal, but I want more than that now. I want to be the strongest person in the entire world. I want to be... their God," he said. Anko looked into her sensei's eyes, seeing the determination in them. She also saw the ruthlessness too, something that meant he would do anything to acquire the power to become this 'God' no matter how completely wrong and twisted.

"I... think you're already the strongest... person in the world..." Anko mumbled. She went on a pleasing streak, mumbling on. "You're _my_ God, Orochimaru-sensei," she admitted. It was mostly true. She looked up to Orochimaru as a deity, the most amazing thing in the world. He was so smart, so powerful; she envied him and looked up to him every day. She would be lost without him. Orochimaru had an amused smile on his face. He did like the continued adoration she had for him. He was her God, and it felt... good. He only hoped that after everything that would happen in the future, that adoration would win out over hate for him from her.

"I want you to prove that to me one day, my dear," he said, and Anko nodded. She would. She swore it. "Now, Anko, answer this for me: to what lengths would you go to acquire power?" he asked. Anko looked adoringly up at Orochimaru.

"For you, any lengths, Orochimaru-sensei," she said, causing the man's smile to widen.

"Would you endure any amount of pain to get it? Big or small?" he asked. Anko clenched her fist.

"Any amount. You name it, I'll endure it," she said, looking back out across Konoha as the sun finally slid below the horizon and they were plunged into darkness. Orochimaru smirked, pleased with her answers. He really did like this kid.

Seventeen year old Anko had calmed down a little since her power rush. She was still sadistic beyond belief, but she'd managed to calm down her bloodlust to watch the events that unfolded. It was sort of cute. She'd remembered adoring the Sannin more than anything in the entire world, but now she'd watched herself saying that he was her God, and it struck her just how much she'd loved him. She couldn't believe she'd hated him so much over the past few years. She guessed she wasn't angry at her being used by him so much as she was angry at him leaving her. Heh, it seemed she didn't hate the man after all. She'd just missed him.

The scene faded away again, but this time no more scenes took its place. Anko was standing in darkness again, but this time it wasn't her own. She felt content there, welcoming the darkness that surrounded her and then the 'ground' disappeared beneath her once more. Anko was falling. But this time she was falling out of the strange dimension and back to the real world, where ninja of all rankings were waiting for her.

* * *

Thank you to **Ryunn Kazan**, **NinjaSheik**, **Taichi09**, **Kise M**, **ankofan**, and **fishyfella** for the reviews. ^^ It's really appreciated. :D


	6. The Chamber of Scrolls

Anko groaned, opening her eyes. Her neck felt sore and her legs were burning from the efforts of the previous night. Her wrists were still scarred from having been cut into by the handcuffs, although as Anko tried to rub the sleep out of her eyes she realised that once more they were chained together. A snarl rumbled from her. She hated being continually chained and bound. Despite feeling sore all over she had to say she'd never felt better. A smirk met her lips and she focused her attention on the curse seal on her neck, aiming to activate it, however before she could she heard voices.

"She's awake!" shouted someone.

"Quick! Tell the Hokage!" another person said. She heard clinking and squinted, seeing three shinobi outside her cell. She realised she must have been moved to another cell, and was now being guarded. Had they found out that Orochimaru had talked to her? But for some reason, she oddly didn't care. So what if they knew? So what if they thought she was like him, because now, she knew she **was.** She growled, watching one of the shinobi run off to tell the Hokage she was conscious whilst the other two entered her cell. They opened the metal door, walking in and coming towards her. _That's it, come on. Just see what happens when you touch me,_ she thought to herself, tensing. The shinobi didn't know it, but they were walking to their deaths. Closer and closer, they were soon in front of Anko. She put on a facade of weariness and dizziness to fool the shinobi, and they easily believed it and leaned down. They both grabbed her roughly, bringing her to her feet, and that's when she smirked.

The shinobi saw it too late.

The curse mark spread across her skin like wildfire as the sound of metal breaking echoed around the cell. Her arms shot up and grabbed the shinobi around the necks, pulling them up into the air as Anko chocked them. She sneered up at them as they thrashed about in her grip, but when they lashed out at her she tightened her grip, threatening to crush their throats, and they submitted.

"What's the Hokage got in store for me?" Anko interrogated, loosening her grip momentarily to get a response. The two shinobi looked at her in fear and hatred, and Anko sent back the hatred a hundred times fold. The two shinobi recoiled under her hateful stare, and one of them shouted out a response.

"He's going to have you killed, you worthless piece of tra—" he didn't finish his sentence. Anko's right hand crushed his throat in an instant, rendering him unable to speak and dead. She tossed aside the now limp man and let his body roughly hit the brick walls of her cell and slump to the ground. She looked back at the other shinobi, raising an eyebrow. He had his hands in-between her hand and his neck, keeping himself alive and not choking as much as he could have been. He struggled to give her a reply through his struggle not to be choked.

"He's discussing it... now... with the elders... He said he'll decide... after he's talked to you..." he coughed, "but... you're going to be... put to death... once they find out you... killed a shinobi..." Anko's sneer grew on her face.

"Actually, I killed two," she stated as a snake slipped out of her sleeve. It coiled around the man's head, paralysing him with fear, before rearing back its head and striking the man's neck. He died instantly. The snake disappeared back into the depths of her sleeve as she effortlessly picked up the man and looked around. She wanted to talk to the Hokage and find out about what was going to happen to her. She finally understood what Orochimaru had been doing. He'd gained the trust of the village, been a valuable asset to them, but he'd been betraying them all along. Konoha had been his cover, and he'd used them to get what he wanted, killing off their citizens mysteriously for the use of his experiments. How clever. She closed her eyes; nodding her head, then re-opened them and walked over to the man she'd thrown against the wall, still holding the other dead man in her arm. She picked him up and took him to the back left of the cell where her bed was, and where it was the darkest. She shoved the two bodies under the bed where they wouldn't be found, hopefully, for some time. Then she could dispose of them after her meeting. After all, these shinobi weren't anything special. Konoha wouldn't go looking for them. She then swiped the key to her cell off the first shinobi she'd killed, and retracted her curse seal. She walked over to the cell door and closed the door in on herself, then stuck her arm out and locked the cell door. She then threw the key across the room onto a table, and brought her arm back into the cell just as a door opened down the hall.

Her face became the picture of despair and confusion as Anko's hands grasped the bars, her head peeking out slightly at the people walking down the hall. There were four more shinobi, but lucky for them they weren't going to die. They found the key on the table and walked over to Anko's cell.

"Why are you doing this to me!" Anko cried out at them. "I didn't do it, I swear!" she pleaded, but they didn't listen. She didn't think they would anyway. In fact, one of the shinobi came over and withdrew a kunai, and Anko took a step back from the bars, displaying shock.

"Heh, of course you didn't. Why would you admit to it, _Orochimaru's student?_" he said, and then he flicked the kunai. If it hit, Anko knew it would lightly slice her cheek and draw blood. She didn't even know why he was bothering with such a petty tactic. She could easily outmanoeuvre it. Her hand shot up and caught the kunai between her index and middle finger. She stared idly at it, and then her features turned to a sharp frown. Urgh, she didn't even want to try and fool these pathetic ninja anymore. She didn't want to be with them for any longer. She growled, shooting the shinobi a death glare. He immediately cowered back under the bloodlust that radiated from her, causing him to distrust her even more. She would've protested before, but he was right to distrust her now; although it was their fault in the first place why she'd grown cold towards them.

The shinobi she'd frightened scurried back to his friends who were looking for the shinobi Anko had killed, and she saw him whisper something urgently into the supposed leader's ear. He saw the leader shot a worried look at Anko, and then he called the other two shinobi in. They'd found the key, and now they approached Anko's cell; they jammed the key into the lock and twisted, unlocking the door with a click. They entered quickly, and Anko made no attempt to stop them when they took her by the arms and began to lead her out. She felt one of the shinobi about to roughly push her but she stopped him in his tracks by turning towards him as they walked, a murderous look in her eyes.

"You fucking manhandle me and I'll kill you," she growled, and this only made the ninja hold onto her all the tighter. She shook off her annoyance. He'd get his later on when she was out of this dump of a village. She was sick and tired of their distrust, their filthy looks. She'd tried to be one of them, become one of the citizens too, but they didn't want to accept her. In the end, it was going to be bad for them.

She was lead out of the prison and down the street towards the Hokage Mansion. The other people in the village looked down at Anko, hatred or fear on their faces. Mothers clutched their children close to them, and the children without parents around fled of their own will anyway. Normally she'd be upset by this, but now it all just turned to anger and hatred. She wasn't despised just for being Orochimaru's student anymore; the citizens had found another reason to hate her, because she had been sent to prison. They hated her again now because she had committed a 'crime.' She was Konoha's outcast.

They walked up the staircase to the Hokage's room, and Anko watched as one of the shinobi knocked on the door to the Lord's room. She heard a 'come in,' and they entered. Anko was brought in, and saw the Lord Hokage sitting behind his desk looking as old as ever. Behind him stood two of the legendary Sannin, Tsunade on the left and Jiraiya on the right. Anko was caught off guard by this, wanting to know why such powerful ninja had been summoned. It had been said that Tsunade had left Konoha after the death of the two most precious to her, so why was she back in Konoha now? Was it just because of her 'crimes' that the medic nin was here? She knew they were missing just one more of the Sannin, her old sensei. But he was a defect, a Missing Nin, just like she was determined to become after this petty meeting. On the left side of the room were lined high ranking Jōnin of the village and a few ANBU, excluding Kakashi, and on the right side of the room were lined the council of elders. She could already feel the mistrust and hatred coming down upon her, but she ground her teeth together and ignored it; the Sannin showed no emotion, and Anko guessed they maybe didn't feel such hatred because they'd known what Orochimaru did to people. She was brought to the centre of the space between the desk and the door before being forced down onto her knees before the old man Hokage. She looked up at him with contempt, her eyes ablaze with the anger at her treatment over the past few days. The leader of the four shinobi who'd brought her here walked towards the Hokage and bent over to whisper into his ear. The old man nodded and then the leader and the other three shinobi left the room, leaving Anko alone on the floor.

The Hokage stood up with a frown, walking around his desk and standing in front of Anko.

"What have they done to you, Anko?" he said, sympathy lacing his voice. She didn't know what he meant; although she was thrown by the way he hadn't talked to her with hatred. She could feel slight shock emanating from the others in the room, their hatred for her clashing with the Hokage's sympathy. Anko clenched her hands into fists, remaining silent.

"Look at yourself," Sarutobi said, "you're a mess." Anko could see what he meant now. Her wrists were scarred and bloody from resisting the handcuffs, her skin pink around the scars and cuts. Her clothing was tattered and cut where she'd slammed herself into the bars countless times and fell against the ground and walls of her cell, and she had cuts and ugly bruises all over her skin. Her eyes were dark and haunting, as if possessed by a ghoul, and the way her purple bangs hung over her face and cast it in shadow made her look all the more frightening. Speaking of which, her hair was a mess, strands everywhere and knotting together, but it was still held up by her hair-band. She self-evaluated herself, but didn't care. In fact, she liked looking like this right now, hoping they'd feel damn guilty about hurting her into this state. Anko stayed still, meeting the Hokage's stare without indicating she gave a damn about her state. He sighed.

"I'm terribly sorry, Anko. After we've talked through these events I'll have a medical ninja heal you back to health. I don't blame you, really I don't. Orochimaru has a way of getting people in trouble," he said, causing Anko to flinch. How would he have known Orochimaru was here? He was the Hokage, she realised, so it mustn't have been hard; he could possibly have used the Crystal Ball Technique to find him. That damn crystal ball. Anko swallowed hard, and then spoke back to the Hokage, venom in her tone.

"I don't care if you blame me or not. I know I didn't hurt Kakashi or kill that bloody librarian. You're a pretty crappy Hokage to just let your shinobi beat me up like this without hard evidence to say I killed her," she spat. This was instantly met with outrage at her insult to their Lord, and one of the Jōnin tried to beat her around the head because of her foul tongue, but the Hokage ushered him back.

"I apologise for letting this happen, I really do. You're a respected shinobi of our vi—" the Hokage started.

"Don't give me that bullshit," Anko growled. "Every **fucking **day I see every **fucking** citizen of Konoha treating me like **fucking** scum. No one likes me. No one trusts me. Everyone wants me **dead,**" she stated, her mutinous eyes met with the hard glares of everyone in the room. The Jōnin were seething with rage, the council already muttering that she was a lost case, that her death was now inevitable. The ANBU didn't show any emotion. Even Jiraiya and Tsunade were shaking their heads, not appreciating Anko's rude tongue. Only the Hokage continued to look sympathetically at her. She carried on. "There's no way I'll ever be accepted into this village, all because _I _was the student of _Orochimaru,_" she said, and the way people tensed and shook with anger when she said the missing nin's name made her smirk. Her smirk widened, becoming a maniacal grin. "And he taught me more than anyone else in my life! He was... the _only person _to accept me! He was there for me when none of you were! He helped me get over the loss of my parents, gave me a home when I had none, and offered to become my sensei. _Him, _one of the three Legendary Sannin! I must have been pretty **damn** special, and even after he left me, I came back here ready to serve Konoha, because that was my true home. I was ready to help, ready to pledge my whole being to this village, and wanted to get back to my normal life... but I guess that's the point. I never really had a normal life, and because of that no one sees Anko. No one sees a little purple-haired kunoichi extending a helping hand. They see a deadly, poised-to-bite snake who'll betray their village in a second," she stopped, letting her words sink in. Everyone was listening intently, although the bloodlust – the lust for **her** blood – still radiated off the majority of people in the room. Anko took another breath. "Even when I was pounding against those bars, trying to get someone to come to me, to help me, give me some sympathy and _believe me_, I couldn't even have that. I didn't have anyone come and say, "Hey, Anko, I'm here for you," because this village thinks I'm unworthy of that kind of affection," she said, and now let her real emotions show. Her lips curved in a furious, hateful snarl, her eyebrows furrowing sharply inwards, and she stood up. An elder took a step forwards, as did two Jōnin, but she kept going. "AND THEN HE CAME," she almost shouted in all of their faces. The Hokage had remained still throughout the whole ordeal. Tsunade and Jiraiya stirred at Anko's latest words, interest peaking at the mention of their former teammate. "Orochimaru came and he extended that hand, he was there for me in my time of need, because once again he's the only one who's accepted me and ever will. It's not my fault I had a screwed up childhood, but now it's your fault that you've pushed away someone who had Konoha in their best interest. All of you... I hate you, and now I'm going to get out of this fucking village because I can't stand any of you anymore. You all hate Orochimaru so much. Heh. He's a better person than all of you put together," she smirked, and her eyes darted around for the nearest exit.

She was shoved roughly over onto her knees again, her arms being grabbed and then held behind her back. The Hokage's eyes were hurt, hating to see someone fall into the evil clutches of the man he'd been unable to save from the darkness. Anko was being held down by two Jōnin, their expressions impassive as they thought about killing her right then, but the Hokage needed answers.

"So Orochimaru came back..." Sarutobi muttered. His words annoyed Anko even further, because once more they cared more about the Missing Nin than her own being. Here she was, abused, hurt, and as soon as the snake's name came to her lips all attention was put on _him, _her forgotten. "Anko, tell us, what did he say," the Hokage pressed. Anko sneered up at him.

"Why would I tell you? You cowardly little shit. You couldn't kill him the first time, I doubt you could do it now," she hissed. This had an effect on the Hokage, making him step back, further wounded by the words of his failure against his best student. The subject saddened him beyond words. The Jōnin applied pressure to her arms, nearly breaking them, and Anko was forced to submit again.

"Anko," Sarutobi said sadly, "I believe that you didn't kill the librarian, and I believe that you didn't hurt Kakashi. You're not a murderer, I believe you, I really do. We need these answers for the well being of the village, and I know you wouldn't hurt anyone in the village if your life depended on it. I'll have you put in a nicer cell whilst we discuss what we're going to do with you, and then we'll bring you back to give us the answers we need. If you give us sufficient answers, we'll let you go," he said, the aftermath of his words causing a ripple of anger to sweep across the room. Outbursts came, accusations at her guiltiness. Anko didn't care. Sarutobi quieted them. "Because, Anko, you are a citizen of Konoha," he said. Anko felt a pang of hurt in her heart at the mention of that.

"Hey... Lord Hokage," one of the Jōnin said, looking at her elbow. "There's an unusual red mark on her elbow," he said, cocking his head to the side. Anko didn't know about any weird mark, or at least, any weird mark on her elbow; her left shoulder twitched. Her elbow was a deep red colour, and as the Hokage came over and looked at it, he frowned. He called Tsunade over and she took a look at it. Tsunade frowned too. She walked around and looked at Anko, and Anko could understand why she was feared. If she hadn't grown up with Orochimaru she definitely would have been quaking in her boots right now. Tsunade was terrifying.

"The mark on your elbow is from where an excess of chakra has been pumped into your system, and because there's too much in one place it's caused the redness. Tell me, Anko, who's been putting extra chakra in you?" Tsunade asked. Anko didn't understand. She never remembered anyone touching her elbow—

_She looked around for Orochimaru but he'd gone, and only knew where he was when she felt that slight rustle of wind. She attempted to elbow him, but his right hand caught her elbow and twisted it over her head. He applied pressure and she was forced to submit as a jolt of pain was sent through her body. She crumpled to the ground and he stood above her, still holding onto her elbow. Anko grunted._

"Orochimaru," Anko whispered to herself, although that was an answer to Tsunade.

"Did he try and help you escape?" Tsunade questioned, but Anko had come back to reality now and was glaring up at Tsunade, refusing to answer. Tsunade sighed. "Look, I know Orochimaru can be a pain in the arse, and he's good at snaking around and fucking people up, but seriously Anko, we need to know this. From one girl to another, tell me," she said. Anko narrowed her eyes, but spoke. Something about Tsunade made her stomach jump with nerves.

"He offered to take me away from Konoha," she stated. Tsunade took in a breath, stopping her urge to want to strangle the snake, even though he wasn't here.

"And did you take the offer?" Tsunade pressed. Anko scoffed.

"If I had then I wouldn't be here right now, would I?" she growled. "For a Legendary Sannin, you're pretty dumb," she continued. Tsunade lost it a little and hit her upside her head, causing Anko to let out a groan of pain, her head ringing. She held onto consciousness though and looked back up. She could see a glisten of happiness in Sarutobi's eyes that she'd turned down Orochimaru, and a wave of relief had spread through the room. But, things had changed since she'd turned him down.

"The excess of chakra was used for something. I have a few guesses, Anko. Have you been having any realistic dreams or nightmares since talking with Orochimaru?" Tsunade asked. Anko jolted, and Tsunade smiled at the reaction. She'd got it right first time. Anko meanwhile fumed that she'd reacted so, but she realised now what the dark nightmare last night where she'd adventured through those few memories and battled her inner self were all Orochimaru's doing. Heh, it made her shake her head slightly. He'd brought out the worst in her, although he probably thought that was the best of her being. She didn't need to answer now, so instead talked of other things.

"Hmph. Like I said, I didn't kill the librarian, and I didn't hurt Kakashi. I'm innocent about that. You judged me so wrongly because of Orochimaru, and since his visit I _did_ have a nightmare, and... to put it simply... it let out the real me," she explained, then smirked. Tsunade shook her head.

"Whatever he did to you, don't let it take over, Anko. Don't let that happen. Me, Jiraiya and Sarutobi-sensei believe you, and we'll make sure no one treats you wrong again in the village. Orochimaru's come back after all these years, and I know it must be hard on you, but don't let him control you, Anko. Think for yourself!" she drilled into the kunoichi's head, but she wasn't listening. She needed to escape, get out of here. "I know you wouldn't kill anyone in the Leaf," Tsunade said. Her rage had risen with her earlier words, her passion against Orochimaru rising, but she'd quieted to a whisper with the last sentence, and Anko stilled. She blinked, looking up at Tsunade. How wrong the woman was. Suddenly a crash echoed across the room as two shinobi ran in, exasperated and looking tired from running frantically across the village to here.

"Lord Hokage!" one of them yelled. Anko couldn't look up to see them because she was being held to the ground by the Jōnin, but she could sure as hell hear them.

"We found two dead Leaf ninja under a bed in one of the prison cells!" the next said, sweat dripping down his face. He then looked and saw Anko pinned to the ground, and yelped. "_Her_ cell!" he cried, pointing at the purple haired kunoichi. Anko grinned sadistically. Sarutobi looked past Tsunade at Anko.

"Is this true! Did you kill them, Anko!" he demanded. They'd been too slow on getting Anko out of the prison cell and here. They were too late. Was she already lost?

"Looks like the cat's out of the bag," Anko sneered. Then she acted. Tar markings were suddenly slipping across her body, covering her face, arms, legs and body in seconds. She arched her body up and the Jōnin were thrown effortlessly off her, crashing against the wall as Anko rose to her feet in a quick motion. Tsunade had previously leant down to look Anko straight in the face, and as a result of that, Anko's knee now flew up and smashed Tsunade in the face. The blonde-haired woman staggered back, clutching a bleeding nose as her anger rose to unimaginable levels. Everyone moved to surround her, but backtracked after Anko's hand touched the floor, blood trailing down her thumb. A large, venomous snake coiled around Anko, baring its sharp fangs and hissing angrily at everyone who approached it and its master. Anko made more hand seals whilst the snake backed off the approaching ANBU, Jōnin, Elders and Sannin; the Hokage and two ANBU hadn't partaken in the circle, the Hokage taking a step back in case Anko made an attempt on his life and the ANBU protecting him. Anko completed her hand seals as the snake around her moved off her. This was truly an act of selfishness; the snake spun its thick body around and hit everyone around it as Anko sucked in a deep breath and blew a line of fire along the snake's length. This in turn caused the snake to burst into flame, and it was just a length of scorching heat as it whacked the people away. Those with sense used a Substitution to escape, but others were hit and fell to the ground, either dead, winded, or badly burned. The Hokage, Sannin and ANBU were unscathed, and half the Jōnin were fine too. The elders, not as nimble and healthy as they had once been, were dead. Of course this was expected, as Anko had a limitless amount of power radiating from the Curse Seal on her neck. The snake had perished in the flames as well though, and when the dust, smoke and flames had died down, it was apparent the reptile was dead. Anko was also gone.

"Out of the window," Jiraiya muttered, walking to the window behind the desk. The glass was shattered, and as his eyes looked out he saw Anko's figure sprinting down the streets of Konoha. She'd escaped, but how far she got before she was captured again was still debatable. Jiraiya looked at Sarutobi for instructions.

"That seal on her neck grants her more power than I would have thought. I thought I'd sealed it, but apparently she's let it loose. What Orochimaru did to her that night I have no idea," the Hokage said, a heavy frown upon his face. He then looked at the damage done, knowing he'd mourn for the dead elders later. For now he had to take on his role as Hokage and dictate what was to happen.

"Alright, me and three Jōnin will stay here and clear this all up. I will get to work looking at Anko's file and medical report to see if there's anything we need to know now. Meanwhile, I want Tsunade and Jiraiya to go straight after Anko, and the rest of the unhurt Jōnin to circle around the village and cut her off so she can't find an escape route after Tsunade and Jiraiya appear. I also want the ANBU to seal off all entrances into the village so that Anko can't escape even if she does get past Jiraiya and Tsunade. Is that understood?" he asked, and received various words of understanding back to him. He nodded, and then in blurs the Sannin, Jōnin and ANBU disappeared, off to hunt down Anko. Sarutobi sighed, looking at the destruction around him. Hate only gives birth to more hate. He didn't blame it on the villagers though. He blamed it on himself for not keeping a better check on how she was being treated, especially after the delicate condition Orochimaru had left her in after abandoning her. He sighed again, turning on the injured Jōnin in the room and the others trying to hurt them. Walking over, he began to help them himself.

Anko was dashing through the streets, ignoring the frightened gasps of the citizens as they saw her running with black markings all over her body. They must have thought her some kind of devil, but she relished that thought, and wasn't angered by it. So much had changed in so little time. Anko knew the Jōnin, Sannin and ANBU would be giving chase, but she was determined to out run them and escape the Hidden Leaf. That or she could hide and stealthily sneak past.

"Shit," she murmured, feeling the presence of a Jōnin up ahead. Was she really that slow? _Work on speed,_ she jotted down in her head, and then darted down an alleyway to her right. Suddenly she stopped, frowning. She'd been literally everywhere in the Hidden Leaf Village, but for some reason this alley just felt new to her. It was weird though, because for some reason something in the back of her mind was telling her to leave this alley now and find somewhere else to hide. She began to step back out of the alley, but she stopped herself. What was happening? It was as if some kind of force was making her leave... She could only think of one solution, and if she was right she'd be fine. She had a hand seal.

"Release!" she said confidently, and suddenly the force was expelled. "So, there's some kind of Genjutsu at work here... Hmm, if that's so then there's gotta be something important up ahead," she concluded, and then walked further into the alley, eyes peeled for the slightest sign of anything significantly important. It was only at the end when her dark eyes found the form of a wooden planks boarding up a hole in a wall to her left.

"Jackpot," she grinned, kneeling down and tearing the planks away as if they were as light as a feather; her curse seal was still activated. Soon the gap was exposed, and Anko noticed that she would only just be able to slip through. She gingerly lowered her feet through, and then soon slid her entire figure down the small slope that had been exposed. She landed on the ground about five metres down, and was soon back on her feet, eyes skimming the dark area she'd landed in. There was just another passageway, and not a long one at that. She could already see the dead-end. Nevertheless she withdrew her kunai and began to walk down the thin passageway, on guard for traps and the like. None came, and soon she was face to brick with the dead-end. She looked it up and down, tapping it and prodding it to test its stableness and to try and check to see if there was anything on the other side. Unsatisfied after receiving no answers, she packed her fist with chakra and punched the wall, aiming to break it down and see if there was anything else on the other side, but nothing happened. She cursed, feeling her knuckles become bloody, but the markings on her hand quickly bunched together around the cuts and healed them, leaving her skin sizzling slightly.

Anko sighed unhappily, knowing there was something up here. Of course, if it was a normal wall she'd at least have left a good-sized crater in the brick, but not even a scratch had appeared. Anko grew frustrated, but she knew she couldn't linger because the Sannin and other ninja would be on her at any second. She turned to leave, but that was when she noticed something on her kunai. The reflection on it showed the corner of the wall she'd just been inspecting where a small hole was visible. Anko whirled around and crouched down, pocketing her kunai as she found the little hole. She could just about fit her thumb into it. She frowned. She wouldn't be able to look through it because it was right in the corner, so she pondered for a moment on what her possible options were. After going through a couple she decided on a course of action and bit her thumb again, letting loose some more blood. Then she poured very little chakra into her Summoning Jutsu as her hand touched the ground. In a puff of smoke she summoned a small garden snake. She whispered instructions to it, and after receiving a nod of understanding back Anko watched the reptile slither through the hole and check what was on the other side.

Anko, not finding any use for the curse seal right now, let it retreat back to the mark on her neck and felt her power slip away from her. It made her ache to activate it again, to get that power back; it was quite addictive. However, she resisted and waited for her little snake to come back. Suddenly there was an earth-juddering quake as the brick wall began to shake and rumble sideways, revealing an area beyond. Anko gasped as her pupil less eyes fell upon a vast area full of scrolls. It was like a miniature library in here, except it would have been better if not for the mess at the back. At the end of the large room were metal slabs sticking out of the ground, chains and shackles attached to them. These held up the rotten, decayed bodies of once-Konoha-citizens. By now most of them were skeletons, most of their cracked bones littering the floor beneath them. Dried blood splattered the areas around them and across the metal they'd once been held up on, as well as upon a few tables where more skeletons lay. Medical tools were also evident upon silver trolleys by the table. Anko wasn't affected by them; however she was affected by what they meant. This was a lab of sorts, and she was definitely sure that it had belonged to Orochimaru.

Anko walked into the room, mesmerised yet filled with dread. If these scrolls had belonged to Orochimaru, then what did they contain? After taking two steps in another juddering noise rumbled across the chamber and the room re-sealed itself, the brick wall placing itself back in position. Anko suddenly dodged to the right as a kunai whistled past, aimed right where her head had been a second before. There were traps too! Anko was forced into a frenzied dance of survival as she whipped out her kunai and deflected some oncoming senbon. She had to dodge, duck, jump, roll, and manoeuvre her way around the projectiles coming at her, and if that wasn't possible, deflect them with her own kunai. At one point when a single senbon was about to pierce her face she merely tilted her head and the thin metal object hit the metal plate on her headband, bouncing off harmlessly. Anko quickly got into the swing of things and was doing a perfect job of avoiding them all, and was starting to enjoy the thrill when suddenly there was silence. Anko looked around, frowning. All the weapons aimed at her were lying scattered on the ground. She'd gotten through them all without a single scratch; she hadn't been Orochimaru's student for nothing. Anko stood there, huffing and puffing to regain her breath when the garden snake slithered off a latch on the wall that was able to open and close and slid over to Anko's ankle, climbing up it and reaching her ripped tan coat, avoiding holes and rips and finding its way into her pocket. She let it stay there, silently thanking it for its help. She wasn't entirely heartless yet, although she was damn well near it. Her anger and hatred made it very easy for her to forget the people important to her. Right now though, she was just curious.

Anko got her breath back and approached a shelf and took out some scrolls. She shoved the bones of the skeleton off the cold metal table and spread the scrolls out. She'd collected four. Opening them, she began to read through them all.

Anko completely forgot about all the ninja out to get her. She completely forgot about the fact that if she was found then she'd most likely be killed. She became so immersed in Orochimaru's scrolls, her eyes literally feeding off the kanji that trailed down the pieces of parchment. She remembered briefly of the many times Orochimaru would just sit and read all this, and she would beg him to stop and come train her again, or at least pay her some more attention, but he'd always refuse. Now she understood why. His thirst for knowledge was quickly being mirrored in her. Anko sifted through the many scrolls, although she was only able to get through a quarter before she became aware of the time. She quickly picked out the three that had most interested her and skimmed them over once more before finally grabbing her favourite one and taking it to a space on the cluttered floor. It was laced with a red pattern, and the kanji inside it was elegantly written.

"Infrared-Snake-Senses Jutsu. Damn, that's long winded," Anko commented, beginning to read it through properly now; before she'd only read what it did. Now she needed to know possible side effects. Why? Because she was going to learn and use it; so what if it was Orochimaru's Jutsu? She grinned.

_This Jutsu is usable by attaching chakra threads to this scroll and the eyes of the user before making the Snake seal and activating the Jutsu. The threads act as links as a heavy amount of chakra is drained from the user into the scroll before being converted into the energy needed to activate the change for the Jutsu. This energy is then fed back to the user and they will experience changes in their senses; their smell and sight will increase slightly, and they gain the ability of infrared sensing; they will be able to sense infrared thermal radiation. Their accuracy increases too as a result of this._

_All over a lengthy period of time, side effects include paling of the skin, elongating of the canine teeth, slit-pupil irises, possible purple markings around the eyes, and straight away the user may feel nauseous, dizzy and fatigued as their body grows accustomed to the changes. If the user is lacking a large amount of chakra, this Jutsu could possibly drain them of their whole stock and effectively kill them._

At the very bottom of the scroll was a type of writing Anko recognized. _Successfully applied, _the writing said. Anko scowled.

"You bastard, Orochimaru, you've already used this. No wonder..." she trailed off, thinking of all his snake-like features Orochimaru had. They must have been because of this Jutsu. She chuckled, before setting the scroll down and casting two chakra threads out of her fingertips. She attached them to the scroll first of all, and then hesitantly placed them against her eyes. They stung, but she ignored it. For safety measures she then activated her curse seal so she didn't die by the Jutsu draining her of chakra. Covered in the black markings she made the Snake hand seal.

"Infrared-Snake-Senses Jutsu!" she said confidently, and instantly felt heaps of her chakra being drained. She gasped, not having expected the sudden fatigue to come so quickly. In truth, Anko didn't mind the side effects. After all, she'd envied her sensei's looks as a child, but she did have her misgivings about the purple markings around the eyes. They just looked stupid, and she hoped she didn't get them. The other things she could handle. Anko finally felt her strength and chakra amount reach a standstill, realising that the appropriate amount of chakra had been taken now. The Jutsu wasted no time and fed back the snake-like energy, causing her to cry out as her vision went blurry; not just because she had chakra threads attached to them. She felt pain ripple through her mind and a stinging sensation numb her body as she was gifted with the abilities written in the scroll, but Anko felt horrible. She wanted to vomit right there and then, and felt as if the world was spinning all too quickly. The dizziness, the fatigue, the ache, the echoes of her shouting voice; the relief, the stillness, the silence, the bliss, the...

Anko vomited across the scroll, effectively doubling over and snapping the chakra threads too. They left her eyes and she was free to see properly again, but at the moment she was pre-occupied with the dizziness and nausea that had come back full force. Her curse seal receded and she felt extremely tired, and realised that there wasn't a chance in hell she'd be able to escape Konoha now. How could she have been so stupid to do this Jutsu! But she had to try to get out.

She slowly opened her eyes, seeing things a lot sharper now. Her sight had definitely improved, much to her pleasure, and the reek of dried blood filled her nostrils and made her frown in disgust; her smell had improved too. So those were two of the effects. She then blinked, and a wide smirk broke out across her face. She could sense the little snake in her pocket as clear as day. However her joy was short lived as she vomited again. Orochimaru's scroll was ruined now, but they'd both used the Jutsu now so there was no more use for the thing anyway. Anko managed to get onto her feet, but staggered sideways against a table and had to hold it for support whilst she found her balance. She tottered over to the wall and allowed the little garden snake to slither out of her pocket and re-open the wall-doorway again. This time she let it disappear in a puff of smoke afterwards and go back to its home, and Anko stumbled through the exit to be waved off by the grating sound as the door re-sealed itself again. Anko crawled up the five metre slope and wriggled through the hole, getting stuck as she suppressed the urge to vomit again, and she finally freed herself and lay on her back in the alley, taking in deep breaths of fresh air. Ah, it felt good, but there was no time to waste.

Anko made sure her balance was good before leaving the safety of the Genjutsu-protected alleyway and dashing through the streets of Konoha once more. A sheen of sweat glossed her forehead, and she could feel her curse seal tingling too, but she ignored everything and blocked out all forms of pain. Her body was only getting used to the Jutsu – her new senses – and she'd be fine just as soon as she got out of the crappy village. She managed to stick to the shadows as much as possible, but she knew it in herself that she wouldn't make it undetected.

As if on cue, as Anko stumbled out into the open she found herself surrounded by some familiar faces.

"Tsunade... Jiraiya," Anko grinned sadistically, waiting for them to act. Her senses were going haywire now, and at one moment she could see the two Sannin as clear as day and the next they were blurring out. She knew she was screwed if they attacked her. Jiraiya would have tried to peek at her breasts if this were a friendly occasion, seeing as her clothing was nearly simple tatters by now, but the serious look on his face told Anko that he was treating this with all seriousness; she assumed that was because she was threatening to run off to Orochimaru; the two Sannin weren't happy when the pale-skinned shinobi was brought into things.

"Anko, you don't have to go to Orochimaru to make things better," Tsunade started to say, but stopped when she noticed that something was up with Anko. Of course, Anko was a strong kunoichi, so she shouldn't have been looking so fatigued and flustered from a simple runaway from the Hokage Building. She also noticed that Anko had an erratic heartbeat and her eyes were twitching every now and again. "What have you done?" Tsunade asked, now curious.

"Shut up..." Anko growled. "I don't answer to you," she elaborated, but then coughed and had to stagger sideways and lean on the side of a building. Tsunade frowned sharply. Jiraiya now spoke up.

"Look, Anko. I believe you're a good kid, so just come and pay for what you've done, and we can sort things out. Me and Tsunade knew Orochimaru. He won't help you. He'll only hurt you more for his own gain. You've already suffered because of him once. Don't let it happen again," Jiraiya said, his voice soft and laced with care. Anko didn't listen though. She vomited onto the ground again, causing Tsunade to frown further. What had Anko been doing!

"N- no... Get lost. I'm... leaving," Anko said, wiping specks of vomit off her lips. She then growled and pushed off the building, charging Tsunade. The woman only had to put a finger to the ground and a fissure split the ground; Anko leaped sideways, avoiding falling in. She withdrew the little garden snake from her pocket and threw it at Tsunade, wanting it to bite her and catch her off guard so Anko could strike, but she was thrown off by her vision blurring again. The snake missed by over a meter.

Anko rubbed her eyes. She had to see, or she'd definitely be captured! Her sight returned full force. Anko cocked her head as she sensed the body heat of four more people in the area. She looked around to watch as the unharmed Jōnin arrived on the scene, cutting off any and all escape routes she could think of. The ANBU had also sealed all gates in and out of Konoha, and Anko sensed their body heat as three of them landed on the rooftops above. So here she was, standing out in the middle of Konoha's street, surrounded by two of the legendary Sannin and four Jōnin, as well as having three ANBU on the rooftops above. Anko settled into an offensive stance, ready for a fight to the death. There was no way she was going back to prison, nor would she stand by and let Konoha sentence her to death; and even if they let her off for some strange reason, no one would ever trust her again. It wasn't worth it. Anko embraced her anger and hatred for the Leaf and activated her curse seal, now looking twice as terrifying despite her fatigue. Then, with a battle cry, she charged; it was all or nothing.

* * *

Thanks for the reviews, **Ryunn Kazan**, **NinjaSheik**, **ankofan**, **fishyfella**, **random nit**, **soul-light-sky**, and **bk00**. :D I appreciate it. ^^**  
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	7. Orochimaru

Anko charged, disregarding her own safety, thinking only to _hurt, kill, escape!_ Two Jōnin appeared in front of her, and the fight began.

_Duck roundhouse kick! Dodge to the right; knee to the gut; he falls; punch to the head; he's down. Avoid thrown kunai; spin around and retaliate with a punch; shit! He dodged; ow, fuck, he scraped my elbow; quickly recover and make hand seals; snakes bite his neck; he's dead. Feel a rustle of wind; leap to the side in time for Tsunade to punch where my head just was; sweep my leg around; Tsunade turns to a log; quickly avoid a fireball shot from an ANBU._

_There are too many! Senses falter; stupid Jutsu; a kick connects with my back and I hit the ground; hands touch the earth and I flip back up; senses return full force; there's someone behind me; jump up and spin; roundhouse kick their head; one ANBU down, two to go; two Jōnin down, two to go; two Sannin still left._

_Fall to the earth; foot comes up and connects with a Jōnin's chin; he grabs it and throws me towards Jiraiya; make the hand seals and substitute to a log in time; reappear above the Jōnin; smash him in the head; he's down._

_Tired... So tired...; FUCK; Painful Sky Leg; drop to the ground; roll to the right; just dodged it. Try to get up; caught by Tsunade; held up by my coat; more hand seals; a clone appears. Summon snake; Tsunade drops me; I hit the ground, but..._

"It's all over," Jiraiya stated. One of the remaining ANBU had caught the summoned snake short from biting Tsunade and killed it with a quick slash of a kunai, Jiraiya had smashed the clone that had summoned it and let it disappear with a puff of smoke, and the Jōnin had his foot on Anko's side, keeping her there as he leaned over and pressed a kunai to her throat. The other ANBU was standing behind the Jōnin in case Anko tried anything funny, and Tsunade was standing, watching Anko with disappointed eyes. Anko had fought, and managed to knock out three Jōnin and one ANBU, but the Sannin stood untouched. She watched them with hateful eyes.

But that wasn't just it. Anko's senses were in full swing right now, and she could sense something else, _someone else_, with her infrared sensing. They were on the building roofs, but all she could do was scowl, thinking it another bloody ANBU. She hated the fact she'd been captured again, even though she'd known she was outnumbered and didn't stand a chance against two of the Sannin. She hated everything right now! Squashed against the earth with a kunai to her throat, she wanted to cry out her anger and murder an army, and even then it wouldn't fully release her pent up emotions. She felt so horrible inside. Her body tensed.

"Stop the Curse Seal," Tsunade commanded to Anko. She knew what the mark was because she'd been there when the Hokage had interrogated her about it back when Anko had first been found on the beaches in the Land of the Sea. Even then the only reason they truly cared for her was so they could get information out of her about Orochimaru and what he'd been up to, but she hadn't been able to remember anything.

Anko scowled, but did as Tsunade asked. It was only because she knew it wouldn't be of any use anymore, and wanted to conserve its energy for later when she was in the position to hurt somebody. The marks receded, leaving Anko's skin clear once more.

"What's going to happen to me?" Anko asked with a growl. She was tired of them squabbling over whether they were going to kill her, help her, lock her up, or god knows what else. She wanted a straight forward answer. No more indecisiveness.

"We're locking you up, Anko. You're not going to ever be let free into Konoha again, for Konoha's and your own safety, and we can't kill you because we want to see if we can find out more information from you," Tsunade explained, voice stern. Anko sure as hell didn't want to be locked up, but if she moved now then her throat would be slit. She was in a lose-lose situati—"

WHAM.

Anko felt the cold metal touch of the kunai leave her neck and the weight of the man's foot and body disappear. She grinned. Alright! Her eyes stung as dust clouded around her, but she was able to keep them open for long enough to look up and see a tall shadow next to her. Was it...? Suddenly the dust cloud exploded outwards in a gust of wind, causing the two Sannin and ANBU to leap back and get into defensive stances. Meanwhile Anko's jaw dropped as she looked at who had come to her aid.

"Long time no see, my dear," Orochimaru grinned, his hand clasped around the throat of the Jōnin who had been on Anko. Effortlessly he threw the man aside where he hit the ground and lay there, gasping for breath. Anko knew Orochimaru was powerful and all, but he wasn't exactly the kind of person who went to this much trouble for one person; however that didn't matter at the moment, because he was here, ready to help fight her out of this hell hole.

Tsunade and Jiraiya's expressions were priceless, both of them displaying emotions of hatred, shock, and anger, as well as the fact they both didn't know what to do; their former teammate had suddenly appeared in front of them, and they didn't know whether to fight, talk, or just wait and see what he would do. Jiraiya broke the silence.

"Orochimaru! S Class Criminal, my former teammate! Get ready to meet your end! We're not going to go easy on you!" he exclaimed. Orochimaru only laughed, his cruel laugh that made Anko shiver every time.

"You think you can defeat me? A fool as always, Jiraiya; you haven't changed a bit. I'm only here to claim what's rightfully mine, and then I'll be leaving," Orochimaru said, a smirk playing across his lips. Tsunade twitched, knowing exactly what, or rather who, Orochimaru was referring to. Anko was still on the ground, staring up at her old sensei. For some reason it felt different to how it had been back in the prison cell, although one thing hadn't changed; ever since the nightmare, she'd come to terms that Orochimaru was an amazing shinobi who had been the only one to accept her, and that the Curse Seal was a gift, but... when she set her eyes on his figure once more, she couldn't help but feel that spark of anger at him crackle deep within her. She couldn't throw off the feeling. He still hadn't made it up to her for abandoning her. Tsunade broke through Anko's thought track.

"If Jiraiya can't then I will! You're not having Anko, and that's final. She's coming with us, to be dealt with by us, and if you don't leave now then I swear, Orochimaru, I **swear** we will destroy you!" Tsunade threatened. Anko looked into her eyes and saw the pain and anger at her old teammate for leaving them... leaving Konoha. Anko looked away.

Orochimaru disregarded Tsunade with a wave of his hand and turned to Anko. She was shaking slightly. Orochimaru raised an eyebrow and held out his snow-white hand to her, that devious grin appearing.

"Well, Anko? I said I'd come back after they'd made judgement on your fate; I'm offering you this for the last time, will you come with me?" he asked. Anko looked up at him, sweat beading her face. This was it. She chose her fate now. She'd been planning it all out over the past days, but looking into his golden eyes now they all fell to pieces, and she had to decide whether to take his hand or not... whether she went with him... or not... She shut her eyes, looking down momentarily, a frown creasing her forehead. Did she really want to go with him?

"Anko!" Tsunade cut in, seeing her deciding; the way she held back from going straight to him made her want to take advantage of her hesitance. "We've given you so many chances now, and even now we're offering you another... But, Anko, if you take his hand... then that's it. As soon as you take his hand you will be classed as a Missing Nin, and then every second of every day for the rest of your life there will be ANBU out looking for you, to _kill _you. There will be no going back," she said. Anko knew she was completely serious, but it made her smirk.

"Sounds just like how I've been treated in Konoha. Everyone wants me dead," she said, and then she turned her eyes around to Orochimaru, her pupil-less optics now hardened with determination, her will stronger than ever. She reached out... and took his hand.

"That was the wrong decision," Tsunade said, her temper flaring. Anko got to her feet with Orochimaru's aid and then got ready for more battle. They wouldn't just be allowed to walk out of Konoha. A hasty battle cry met her ears as the Jōnin from before rushed at Orochimaru. She heard a brief "no" being yelled from Jiraiya, but it was too late for the Jōnin now and Orochimaru snapped his neck before he could even lay a finger on him. His limp body was cast aside and Orochimaru laughed cruelly before turning to his new subordinate.

"Come, Anko," he said, and then made a hand seal. To their left one of the giant walls around Konoha exploded, great big chunks of rock and debris falling to the ground. Tsunade and Jiraiya both looked sideways at the large gap in the wall with shock and rage; then they turned back on Orochimaru. This was it. They were going to catch him and deal back to him the pain he'd dished out to everyone he'd ever met. They'd make him _pay._

This would be hard though, as Orochimaru already had his hand on the ground, blood smeared down his arm on his summoning tattoo. A cloud of smoke enveloped him and Anko, and then a large shadow loomed over the two Sannin and ANBU. A huge snake, although not as big as Manda, had appeared, Orochimaru and Anko on its head. It hissed threateningly before turning its big head towards the hole Orochimaru had made in Konoha's wall. Its slippery body then rushed towards it, crushing houses and leaving destruction in its wake.

Tsunade and Jiraiya looked at each other then nodded, biting their thumbs before making their own summons. A large toad and an equally big slug appeared, and the chase was on. The frog leaped after the snake, managing to catch its tail and yank it back. The snake hissed unhappily and wrenched its tail loose, smacking the toad across the face and sending it flying backwards. Tsunade's slug had shot clumps of acid towards the remains of the wall where the brick melted; the hot liquid then beginning to pour down upon the snake's body as it headed through the hole. Its head had gotten through, leaving Anko and Orochimaru safe; however the snake's body was being burnt by the corroding acid and was slowly killing the reptilian.

"Anko, jump!" Orochimaru commanded, and together they leaped up as the snake shed its old skin, leaving the corroding scales to melt away on the ground as the two ninja landed back on the unscathed snake's head. Orochimaru smirked happily, looking around to watch what else was to happen. Anko was silent, unbelieving that Orochimaru would go to such lengths for her. It was crazy! She'd question him later. For now, she had to stop herself getting caught, although being with Orochimaru made her feel safer than she ever had been whilst feeling like she'd walked into a world of torture.

After recovering from its hit around the face, Jiraiya's toad put its wide hand into a bag it was carrying and pulled out a ball coated with exploding tags. Taking aim at the escaping snake, it launched the projectile through the hole in Konoha's wall.

Orochimaru saw it coming and reared back his head before opening his mouth and letting his tongue shoot out. His tongue extended well over the average length and shot towards the bomb ball. Jiraiya's toad squinted to watch as Orochimaru's tongue whacked the ball, and then jumped in shock as its own bomb began to fly back towards it. Jiraiya made six hand seals as he created oil in his mouth using chakra. He then spat out the oil towards the bomb and ignited it; the on-fire oil connected with the bomb a safe distance away from Jiraiya, Tsunade and their summons and exploded, causing a ripple of air to hit all the combatants. However a cloud of black smoke was created, and when it cleared Anko and Orochimaru were gone.

"Damn!" Jiraiya growled. Tsunade was equally disappointed; she'd un-summoned her slug and joined her teammate on his toads head.

"Come on Jiraiya. If we go now we can get some trackers and try to track Orochimaru and Anko to wherever they're going to hide," Tsunade suggested. Jiraiya nodded and they leaped down into a street in Konoha; the toad disappeared, un-summoned, and the two Sannin rushed to locate some tracking-specialised ninja.

When he was certain they weren't being followed anymore, Orochimaru stopped his snake. He and Anko jumped off the reptile and it disappeared in a cloud of smoke, leaving the two ninja standing together, alone, in a clearing in the forest surrounding Konoha. A few rays of sunlight broke through the canopy, but otherwise it was dark and gloomy. They'd travelled fifty or so miles away from the village, and would soon be traversing more, but it was apparent to Orochimaru that Anko wanted to talk; normally he wasn't nice enough to give people their wants and desires, but he felt like toying with Anko a little seeing as he hadn't seen her in so long before their meeting in the prison cell.

Orochimaru and Anko were standing next to each other; however Anko was silent and was staring sideways, avoiding looking at Orochimaru. He noticed the action and took her chin in two of his pale fingers, pulling her sideways to stare at him. Her eyes were still hesitant.

"Do you remember old times?" Orochimaru asked with a smile, watching her eyes widen a little. She did. She _really _did. She'd loved them so much, and just couldn't let go of those memories no matter what happened. She nodded slightly. "You really have changed since you were a little child, my dear. You've grown considerably," he continued, although Anko noticed a twitch at the end of his mouth, his smile edging on a smirk. She wondered if he wasn't just talking about how she'd grown in her skills and abilities.

"Orochimaru," Anko whispered. "Why did you come back for me?" Her eyes looked into his, hers conveying thoughts about whether he had other, ulterior motives than just seeing her again. "Since when... did you care?" she dared. It became extremely obvious to Orochimaru then that she was still clinging onto how he'd 'abandoned' her. He sighed. He didn't want that coming between Anko and her full usefulness to him.

"Please, my dear, don't insult me like that. You were my student after all; I have every right to try and bring you back to me," he said. Anko didn't move. She didn't understand that last part.

"What do you mean, bring me back to you? You left me!" Anko cried out. Orochimaru smirked slightly.

"And how did that make you feel?" he asked. Anko's expression was one of hurt and despair. He enjoyed seeing her break like this; it was something he liked to watch happen in every person.

"You can't even begin to imagine..." Anko muttered.

"I think I can," Orochimaru dared her. Anko studied his face for a minute and then began to talk.

"It hurt. A lot. I guess you've never really felt hurt, right? You're the great Orochimaru, who just uses others... then throws them away. I bet no one's thrown you away like garbage. I bet no one's ever left you alone, stranded... and especially not by the person you loved the most in the world. Every night I would fall asleep and have nightmares of _you. _I'd wake up, sweating, crying, a painful ache in my shoulder as my last reminder of the man I'd thought to be my loving sensei. You made me feel special, like I had a reason to be in this world. You were the one person who truly accepted me as a person and it felt like you were happy to have me by your side. I cherished the bond I thought we had, but I guess I was the only one who felt that way. You... you have no idea how broken I felt after you left me. I never thought... Ha... I don't know why I'm even telling you this. You don't care," Anko said. Her voice was laced with sadness and loss. She made a fake laugh at the end, trying to put on a weak smile, but in the end she just looked stupid and stopped.

Orochimaru let go of Anko's chin, stepping back. Anko was right. He didn't care. He never cared. He was a heartless, cruel bastard who only used others for his own personal gain, never caring if anyone got hurt for him. Even now, watching Anko pour out her heart-breaking emotions, he didn't even feel a sliver of care for her feelings. He could only regard her as the test subject that had left _him._

"It's all a lie," Orochimaru said with a fake, humorous laugh. Anko growled, annoyed that he threw off her words like that. She was right. He didn't care after all. "Anko," Orochimaru then said, cutting off her thoughts on how she was going to throttle him for all he'd done to her. "_You _left _me_," he stated, making her jump slightly with disbelief.

"Don't fuck with me, Orochimaru," she warned, but he'd already moved back forward and slipped his fingers onto her cheek, rubbing her gently like he'd done so many years ago. She was paralysed with nostalgia and shock as a single, vivid memory entered her mind. She soon found herself on the ground on her knees, hands clutching her head as she watched herself in her mind, being bitten by the snake that was Orochimaru.

_She screamed and flailed on the ground, clawing at the earth to find a release from the pain._

This was when he'd given her the curse seal. She'd been in so much pain... He'd given her so much pain...

_She was lying still on the floor, silent, but alive._

She'd survived. She'd been the only one out of ten who'd survived.

_He came back, along with the rat, Amachi. They saw that she was alive, and yet... he still went to leave her._

She'd been alive! Why didn't he take her with him! He'd left her!

_She grabbed his ankle. He turned, and she cried out to him, and..._

What?

"_Care to accompany me then?"_

This was...!

_Her eyes narrowed away from him. No._

She had...!

_He left._

She'd left.

_Why?_

"Why!"

Anko jolted back to reality. Her vision was blurry and she realised she had tears in her eyes. Bile rose from her throat and splashed across the ground, the side effects of the Jutsu she'd used coming back to haunt her. She wiped the tears away from her eyes and then did likewise with the bile on her lips. She could sense Orochimaru above her, and realised she'd said her one-worded question aloud.

"You tell me," Orochimaru said simply. Anko pushed off the ground and got to her feet, swaying slightly as she found her balance.

"How... Why... Did you...?" she spluttered out. She was breaking visibly now, much to Orochimaru's amusement, but he replied anyway to her unspoken question.

"Yes, I wiped your memory. I thought it better than killing you... seeing as I thought you could come of use to me in the future," he explained. Anko didn't know what to do. For all the heartbreak she'd felt after she'd thought he'd left her, why would she have chosen to leave him? It didn't make sense. She didn't understand. She was Anko, the tough, daring kunoichi who could look death in the eye and laugh. So how did Orochimaru manage to reduce her to a crying little girl, broken, lost, and confused? And how did he manage to do it _every single time_ she thought about him?

"I..." Anko choked on her first word, unable to say any more.

"Hush," Orochimaru said. "I won't lie, I did come back to Konoha for something else..." he said with a triumphant smile. He opened his mouth and Anko recoiled in disgust as he produced a scroll from there, taking it in hand and showing his old student. He didn't show its contents, only the outside decorations, but they were a little bit familiar to Anko.

"I'm conducting an experiment at the moment and I needed some of my research that I left in Konoha. I decided to pay you a visit on my way, for old time's sake, and I'm happy it turned out like this. You even found my little lab," he said with a knowing smirk. Anko flinched. How did he know about that! And did that mean he knew she'd used the...

"I can't wait to see the side-effects over the next few days. Although next time I wouldn't go around using random Jutsu you found in my labs without supervision; who knows what could have happened? It is _my_ lab after all," he said. Anko cringed, knowing he was right there. She could have turned into some mutated monster for all she knew. She saw the disapproving stare her ex-sensei was giving her for using his Jutsu, but she tried not to care too much. What's done is done.

"I knew you didn't come just for me," Anko muttered, changing the topic of conversation so he couldn't have at go at her about anything else. Orochimaru smirked.

"But I know you're glad I came for you at all. Soon enough it will be just you and me again, my dear; I'm sure you'll like that. I'm more than willing to let you be my student again. It's been rather... dull... where I've been working lately. Training you might be just the thing I need to get me motivated again," Orochimaru said, toying with Anko's emotions of the 'old days' when she'd been his student before. However he didn't let it become known that he was lying.

They were heading towards a small base where he'd been conducting his latest experiments; he was yet to create the Sound Village he dreamed of making in the future. It would be just he and her, but the thing was he had many things he wanted from Anko other than to simply train her.

For starters, the Jutsu she'd used had only been used once before and that was by him. To see another use it made him want to experiment a little, take her blood samples, note the changes in her appearance and behaviour, and so on. It would be a little pet project whilst he got on with other matters. Secondly he needed someone like her, devoted to him and loyal, to use against his enemies. A good, strong subordinate that he'd trained personally would be helpful for doing things he didn't want to do himself, or couldn't. Thirdly, as soon as he'd seen her again out on the battlefield against Jiraiya, Tsunade and the other ninja he'd immediately noticed a change since he'd met her in the prison cell. He assumed it was the nightmare he'd inflicted on her after pouring the extra chakra through her elbow into her system, but he hadn't expected it to do this much. Seeing her behaviour changes because of that would prove to be another amusing pet project. He could definitely sense the outward hate towards nearly everything. It was only around him that Anko dropped those feelings and became feeble and weak. He would change that.

And lastly, he was planning for her to upkeep a promise made to him long ago. His current experimentations were leading him closer and closer to being able to become immortal through transferring his soul to different bodies. It made him tremble with excitement at the prospect, and a young eleven year old Anko had promised her body to him when he managed to perfect his Jutsu so many years ago. He was sure she'd have changed her mind on the decision now, seeing as it had been years ago and she'd battled with emotions for him every day since he'd erased her memories, but that wasn't a problem for him. When the time came and he'd experimented transferring to other bodies to be sure of its success, he would take the girl over no matter what she thought.

His golden orbs trailed over Anko's shaking form, and he smirked. Yes. Give her a few years for her body to grow some more and her abilities to strengthen and she'd make the perfect vessel for him. He almost looked forward to it.

Anko's eyes swam with emotions. Her mind was telling her to talk back and tell him he was lying, and that she didn't need him to be her sensei again because she was capable of doing things on her own, but her darkened heart told her differently. She took a breath in. Her body soon became still, her shaking dispelled, and she nodded.

"Alright... Sensei..." Anko relented. She couldn't keep it up anymore. She couldn't keep rejecting him like this, constantly wanting to just cry and strangle him when she knew that her body and heart ached for them to be together again. She wanted him to be her sensei again. She wanted him to praise her when she got a Jutsu right, chuckle and smile when she'd manage to impress him with her fast learning. She wanted to hear him sternly tell her off when she messed up, but then correct her and watch as she got over her mistake and did things right the next time. She wanted to be by his side. She wanted for him to look at her and see her as something to be proud of. She wanted him to just be _Orochimaru _again. The last five years had been her referring to him as her ex-sensei, the one who'd abandoned her after inflicting endless pain on her. She just wanted him to be Orochimaru again, her sensei she looked forward to training with and travelling with every day. The one she constantly tried to impress, and the one she'd always wanted to be like.

But maybe that was asking too much.

"Then let's go," Orochimaru instructed. He didn't want to delay anymore. He wanted to get back to his base as quickly as possible so he could commence with his experimentations. Also, Anko looked like she was near to passing out, and if she did before they got to the base then that was extra weight for Orochimaru and he _never _liked that. In fact, if she passed out he'd probably leave her where she'd fallen and let her find her own way to the base when she woke up; a little test if you will to see if she could navigate her way around at all.

Anko nodded and the two of them leapt back up into the trees, beginning their long run to Orochimaru's base. They had quite a way to go yet, and Anko felt so tired. She'd shut her eyes at points and let her infrared sensing do the work of leading her to follow Orochimaru so her eyes could just rest. She just wanted to sleep, but she knew that in the vicinity of Orochimaru that was a dangerous thing to do, especially when they were supposed to be running.

"Alright! You guys are the best trackers, so I've heard. We've assembled you here today to lead you on a mission to track and capture the infamous Sannin, Orochimaru, and his subordinate, the Missing Nin, Anko Mitarashi. We'll be leaving immediately, so I hope you're all prepared," Tsunade declared to her newly made team of trackers. She and Jiraiya and had quickly researched them with the help of the Hokage after reporting to him all that had happened. His face had paled considerably at the mention of Orochimaru, but he'd gotten over it and helped assemble the ninja in front of Tsunade now. Next to her stood Jiraiya and before them both were two Hyuuga, two Inuzuka and an Uchiha. They were all well suited for the job, the Uchiha there plainly because he was an excellent fighter and already at ANBU level. For this mission however he wasn't wearing his ANBU uniform. Tsunade looked them all over, nodding her head with a grin. She felt she'd picked them all out well, especially the Uchiha. Itachi was considered the best.

Anko closed her eyes again. Seeing as she was still suffering from the side effects her senses could be thrown out of whack at times and she'd stumble on a branch. Orochimaru always acted like he didn't notice and kept on running, and Anko had to work extra hard to catch up with him again. Her infrared sensing also kept on slipping on and off, so she was unable to close her eyes and rest for long periods of time. They both kept silent throughout the entire trip, not speaking because there was nothing to speak about. Orochimaru liked it like that anyway, she knew. He didn't like to waste words.

With a deep inhale, Anko let her breath then flow out of her mouth like a calm river, and with the relaxing feeling that came with it she recalled a memory.

_Anko shrieked, pulling the covers of her bed up to her nose and trying to ignore the raging weather outside. Rain lashed against the windows, and grey thunderclouds loomed threateningly over the sleeping village of Konoha. A resounding boom echoed across the village, causing Anko to shriek with fright again. She was shaking, trembling, scared out of her skin. It was rare that there were thunderstorms in Konoha, but when they came they scared the daylights out of her._

_Anko couldn't stand it anymore. She was young, afraid, alone, and she wanted reassuring that everything was alright. Her little feet touched the wooden panelling that was her floor and she rushed out of her room. The house she was staying in was elegantly decorated, and every room was as beautiful as the next. At the same time it had a dark aura to it, even in the daytime; it was midnight now though, and the creeping shadows made Anko run even faster to her destination. Anko's small hand opened the door to her guardian's room and she slipped inside, her breathing shallow._

"_Sensei?" she whispered to the unmoving lump on the bed in this room. Anko had a small bed, whereas her guardian's was huge. She wasn't normally allowed in this room though, only on special occasions; thunderstorm nights were special occasions. The lump moved slightly, and then its deep, sleepy voice replied back to her._

"_What?" was all it said, and Anko shuffled her feet closer to the bed._

"_I'm scared... sensei... Can I sleep with you tonight?" she asked, her voice trailing off into a mumble. She was always shy about asking this, but she felt safe when she was with him, and she overcame her shyness for that. She heard the lump sigh._

"_Never show fear... Anko... Fear makes you weak," it replied. They were both silent for several seconds, Anko twiddling her thumbs anxiously, wondering when the next boom of thunder would be, when her guardian finally replied._

"_Get in," her guardian commanded, and Anko grinned. She jumped into the king sized bed and got under the covers, snuggling closer to the only person who made her feel safe._

"_Thank you... Orochimaru," she said, and drifted off to sleep with a smile on her face, the booms of thunder not scaring her anymore now she was with him._

Anko blushed, remembering the countless nights when a thunderstorm would come and she'd immediately rush to her sensei's bed. She'd sleep with him the whole night, although he'd never be there when she woke up. Still, it felt good to fall asleep next to the person she loved the most. She realised how obsessive she'd been over him when she was younger. It almost made her want to laugh, but was it wrong that now she wanted to feel that security when she was with him again? To be able to go to him when something was worrying her, and he'd made it all go away? She smiled to herself, re-opening her eyes and looking at the figure of her sensei dashing ahead of her. She sort of looked forward to being with him again, whilst at the same time knowing she was going to experience more pain that she'd ever felt in Konoha; but what Anko wondered was whether it would be mentally or physically that she'd be harmed.


	8. His Darkness

The sun had set by the time Anko and Orochimaru reached his base. It wasn't a magnificent base like Anko had first imagined but a dark cave set deep within a mountainside. Orochimaru lowered a Cloaking Jutsu from it and allowed its presence to be exposed to the two ninja. When they'd entered he set the Jutsu back up so no 'unwanted visitors' could find the base. Being the security-safe ninja he was, there was more than a simple Cloaking Jutsu involved in protecting his base however he'd most likely deactivated them all to save himself the trouble of avoiding his traps, alarms and puzzles. He'd planned on staying in this base for quite some time to finish off his experiments, meaning he had to be even more careful so as not to expose the location of the base.

This also meant that now Anko knew about it, she wasn't going to be allowed to leave.

The trip had been hard on Anko, and she needed rest. She leaned her aching body against a cold stone wall as Orochimaru set back up the Cloaking Jutsu, and allowed a deep breath to exhale from her lips. She zoned out slightly, thinking over her situation, trying to order her thoughts, but Orochimaru had finished his little job quickly and was already walking down the hallway they'd entered into. Anko had no choice but to lose her thoughts and wander sub-consciously after him, doing all she could to stay awake.

The last few days had been so hectic on Anko that she'd barely had any time to rest properly without something or someone interrupting her peace. She'd been completely warped out of her usual personality, forced to become bitter and cruel to survive the ordeal and come out alive – although in truth hadn't she always been bitter and cruel? – and she'd ended up doing things without thinking about it, not thinking over the consequences of her actions or what the hell she was actually doing. Heck, less than a week ago she would have seen Orochimaru and leaped at him, ready to try and kill him at the cost of her life, but the world had fucked with her since then and things had turned out differently. Anko wasn't thinking about these things though. She was far too tired and far too messed up at the moment to even breach the topic in her mind.

Anko didn't pay much attention to her surroundings. The hallways were dark, lit only by torches held by brackets on the walls, but that was all she could tell as she mindlessly trudged through what seemed like endless passageways. They took a left, then a right, and then a... she lost count and forgot. It was only when she bumped into a tall, lean figure did she come back to reality and attempt to find out what was happening, but darkness quickly started to engulf her vision. She realised she'd knocked into Orochimaru who was looking down at her with annoyed eyes, but his figure was quickly dissolving; she was always the less-than-perfect student to him, never able to completely please him yet amusing him all the same whilst she tried to.

Orochimaru opened his mouth to scold Anko for being so clumsy, but when he saw that she was beginning to topple forwards he saved his words and caught her instead. They'd stopped outside of the room he'd wanted her to stay in whilst here, and it seemed she'd almost made it, almost managed to live up to his standards and stay awake until he was gone when she could pass out if she so wished, but she couldn't. She never had. She'd never lived up to his expectations, only as an experiment.

"Hmm," Orochimaru wondered, observing the sleeping girl in his arms. At his touch she cringed away a little, but then she began to snuggle in closer to him. He eyed her suspiciously, wondering what on earth was going on in her head. He knew she was extremely fragile right now, unstable and messed up from the recent days, but that would change in the time she would now spend with him. He didn't tolerate incompetence, so she would either have to become strong, physically and mentally, or he would kill her. Simple as, no strings attached.

He pushed open the door to Anko's new room and carried her inside. The room wasn't too big or too small, and was filled with a double bed, a wardrobe and a desk and chair; a door was on the left side of the room too which led to a small bathroom with a shower and toilet. Now Orochimaru had the scroll he'd gone to Konoha to collect he was eager to return to his experiments. He carried Anko to her bed and laid her on top of the covers, but as he turned away to leave the room something stopped him. It was the way Anko moaned out a word after his touch had left her.

"Orochimaru..." she'd groaned. Orochimaru turned back to her, smirking a little. Was she dreaming of him? He sat on the bed beside her and stared down at her sprawled figure; watching little beads of sweat grow on her face. He reached out and gently brushed some of her purple bangs out of the way of her face.

"Foolish girl," he said, even though he knew she couldn't hear him. For the truth was that he'd only gone to see her back in Konoha because he'd felt like toying with her again. He'd wanted to mess with her, break her, and then leave her as payback for her refusing him in the Land of the Sea. He chuckled to himself. Yes, he had been slightly surprised to find out that she'd activated her Curse Seal, but he doubted that once she awoke from a good night's rest, feeling refreshed and happy again like he'd remembered her to be back in the day, that she would be able to do it again.

He began to remember when Anko had been his student all those years ago. He wouldn't lie; he had enjoyed them to some extent. It had felt good to have someone trail after him, worshipping him and doing whatever he asked of them. The absolute loyalty and trust in her eyes had pleased him, but watching that trust break had been even better. Orochimaru licked his lips. Oh he would have some fun with his dear little Anko, but she was disposable too. Sure, she could make a good vessel for him in future years, but there were other people out there and if she died then so be it.

He stood up, leaving the dreaming teen's body to squirm on the covers without him. She would be a fun little experiment for now. He didn't expect her to amount to anything more. As a child she had interested him, and he'd thought her the genius of her generation; she still was, if he was going to be honest; Anko's generation of ninja were all weak-minded, all fools. She had showed talent, had shown to be promising, and he'd trained her. She was a cut above the rest and always would be, but in the end even she had let him down. She hadn't shown the right _attitude._ She hadn't shown him what he'd wanted to see, and thus, they'd parted ways.

He'd only regretted it slightly. It felt like a shame to him that such talent would be put to waste, but he had smirked, like always, and told himself that there were better ninja out there. He just had to find them. Orochimaru reached the door of Anko's room and put a pale hand on the doorknob. He twisted it and opened the door, taking a step through. He took one final glance back at Anko. Heh; he shook his head. She couldn't possibly have gotten any stronger. She was as weak as ever and because of that she disinterested him. She was an experiment now... nothing more.

The door closed with a click as Orochimaru locked it, leaving Anko alone in her room. The light taps of Orochimaru's footsteps echoed faintly down the hallways before they too disappeared. Anko rolled over in her bed, sleeping soundly now. Orochimaru had disappeared from her dreams a moment before, and now peace and bliss enveloped her. She was resting properly for the first time in days, something that would benefit her greatly tomorrow. Her mind began to ease up, and her muscles loosened from their tense positions. Her eyelids stopped twitching and became still, and a slight smile ebbed across her facial features. Although she was asleep a small hum left her lips, and then there was silence.

Anko awoke slowly the next morning. She'd slept in because of her high exhaustion levels, and it was already nearing noon. However this wasn't to be known in the depths of Orochimaru's base. It was always dark down here. The female kunoichi's eyelids fluttered open wearily, and Anko moaned as her fingers gripped the soft sheets of her bed tighter, not wanting to leave the comfy space. She was warm, but cold... She now felt uncomfortable, and slid her body off the bed to try and wake up. She was only half-awake and didn't have a clue what was going on. Her feet touched the floor, and she realised she was still fully clothed, although something felt weird about the garments. They were ripped after all, but her tired mind didn't register that.

"Mmm," she hummed, a nice smell filling her nostrils. Had Kurenai snuck in to her apartment again and made her breakfast? She only noticed how hungry she was when her belly literally roared at her, demanding the food she smelt. She obliged to her belly's demands and smiled as her body trailed towards the plate of buttered toast and dango that had been left for her on her desk, although she didn't remember having a desk. She shrugged off the thought and tucked into her breakfast, feeling a lot better afterwards.

Anko wasn't a morning person. It took her at least half an hour to mentally wake up no matter what time of day it was when she physically woke up. Right now she was sleepily working her way through her usual daily routine. She'd eaten, and was now going to have a shower. If she stunk anymore then she might have completely woken up solely through the putrid stink of her own body odour. She managed to get out of her torn clothing (although at the moment she had no idea how they had gotten like that, but she wasn't thinking about it) and was going on to nearly fall into her bathroom. She managed to keep on her feet though and climbed into the shower basin, twisting the knob that allowed hot water to spray over her body. Ah, that felt good.

She hummed contently, wondering what she would do today. Go and get some dango with Iruka? Maybe go and poke fun at Kurenai for fancying Asuma? Or she could hang out with Kakashi. Wait, she couldn't do that. Kakashi was in hospital. Wait, what? Why was Kakashi in hospital? Oh yeah, he'd been bitten by a snake. Wait, wasn't that at her birthday party? Yeah, he'd been bitten by a snake at her birthday party... and then... he'd gone missing. She'd looked for him but been framed when she found him in the Konoha library. Why was she framed though? Where had she been taken? The darkness there... it had been a prison cell. She'd been in prison? Then someone had appeared to her.

"What the...?" Anko mumbled to herself. She remembered it faintly in her semi-conscious state, but hadn't... Orochimaru appeared? How was that possible? He had been long gone since he'd left her in the Land of the Sea. Wait a second... no, she'd left him?

"Urgh," Anko groaned, trying to remember. Yes, Orochimaru had appeared, and then he'd disappeared again. She'd ended up in the Hokage's office and broken out through the window. Then... she'd fled and found a lab. Someone's lab; _was it_ _his lab? _She'd used a Jutsu... but what one? She ground her teeth in frustration. She'd left the lab, and then ended up fighting the legendary Sannin. Anko yelped. Why would she possibly do that in her right mind?

"What the hell have I been doing?" she muttered under her breath, now beginning to wake up. She recalled being beaten and then... and then... he'd appeared again. This time something else happened though. He didn't just disappear. He'd held out his hand to her. Anko frowned sharply. She did _not_ do what she thought she'd done. No! She remembered taking the snake's hand, and then...

"SHIT!" Anko swore, spinning around and turning off the flowing water. She jumped out of the shower and sprinted into her room. No, this wasn't her room!

"Where am I!" Anko shouted, worry lacing her words. She looked around. This was definitely not her apartment back in Konoha. Despite being naked she rushed to the door leading out of the room and tried to open it. It was locked. She was like a trapped rat! Anko didn't know what to do. She didn't even know that clothes to wear. She only had the ripped clothes that lay discarded on the ground. She ran to her cupboard and flung open the small wooden doors.

Nostalgia threatened to drown her as she beheld the plum-purple t-shirt and small cream shorts she'd worn as a child, as well as some fishnet she'd worn around her legs. Her eyes trailed over them, wide and wavering as her childhood engulfed her. She fought back memories, fought back mental images of her sensei, and tried to focus on a small note attached to the clothing. Trembling fingers reached out and took the note, her pupil-less eyes scanning the elegant writing on it.

_I knew you needed new clothes, and these seemed fitting._ _Enjoy, my dear._

It seemed Orochimaru had gotten the clothes a few sizes bigger than when she was eleven, seeing as they wouldn't fit her otherwise. She really, _really _didn't want to wear these particular garments, but she didn't really have a choice in the matter. She unhooked the clothes, continuing to tremble, before going to get changed.

A couple of minutes later Anko was standing in her room wearing the clothes she'd worn as a child. It made her want to cry, but she was tougher than that. In fact, a part of her soul felt like it was rebelling against the very thought of crying and showing weakness like that. Anko shook her head, tearing her thoughts away from the clothes. Now wasn't the time for that. She had to figure out exactly where she was, what was going to happen to her, and then she had to escape; she still couldn't believe she'd come here. She couldn't believe she was so close to the man she despised...

Anko stopped abruptly. Wait, here was her chance. She was so close to Orochimaru now, the perfect opportunity for her to strike and get him back for her years of heart break. She smirked at the thought, and then quickly picked up her necklace from her lump of ripped clothing. She slipped it around her neck and then tied up her hair and went back to the door to her room. She became frustrated, wondering how to get through a door locked by Orochimaru. She tried kicking it down, but it was enforced with his dark chakra and she couldn't do anything to even scratch it.

It was only when she suddenly felt the warmth of a human body approaching did she stop her thoughts on getting out. She'd forgotten all about her infrared sensing, seeing as there weren't any other warm-blooded creatures around her right now. Her mind drew a blank as she tried to recall the after-effects of the Jutsu, but that didn't matter. She realised it could possibly be Orochimaru approaching her door and took a step back in fear, but then she grit her teeth. No. No more running away and hiding from Orochimaru. She would face him, and kill him. She had to.

There was a click as her door was unlocked, and then a creak as it swung inwards. Anko's body moved to attack, but juddered to a halt as her eyes locked onto Orochimaru's figure. She felt like she'd been paralysed into her frozen position, body stiff even though she so desperately wanted to move. Her facial features crumpled with sheer frustration and determination to move, her eyes flaring with passion against her old sensei, but it was futile against Orochimaru's divine power.

He stood in the doorway, eyebrow raised at his ex-pupil. She looked like she was having an inside battle with the Paralysing Jutsu he'd cast upon her. He'd picked up on her intentions as soon as she'd thought them, and taken precautions to spare him having to bother with her futile attack.

"What ever is the matter, Anko? You plan to attack me, when you willingly came here with me in the first place?" he asked coyly, pretending to be upset and a little shocked at her intentions. Anko knew it was just a façade, and he was a lying bastard beneath. "Oh, and you look good in those clothes, I must say," he added slyly. Anko could just about move her lips.

"My mind was fucked up," Anko answered with a growl, ignoring the comment on her clothes, "by you." Her right arm trembled as she began to be able to move it again. Slowly... Slowly... Anko didn't let herself get lost in her sensei's hypnotic eyes this time. She avoided looking at them, avoided thinking of their times together in the past. She just focused on one thing: her hatred.

"_Do it!" _screamed a voice inside Anko, and she jolted out of her paralysis. Orochimaru displayed slight shock as Anko started to rush at him, but smirked. There was the spirit his old student had had. Anko meanwhile was tearing at Orochimaru with rapid speed, her hands her weapon as she launched her right fist at her old sensei's head. The voice that had broken her paralysis had seemed to vibrate around her being. The dark malice in the tone reminded her of two people, one obvious, but the other was that of the dark copy of herself she'd met in her dreams; the one who she had embraced at the end of the ordeal. She knew she shouldn't refer to it as her dark copy anymore, but as her more dominant state of mind; as who she was. She wanted to suppress the darkness, but she felt like that was the wrong thing to do. She felt like the only chance she had of defeating Orochimaru was to give in to the part of herself he cherished and had interest in. It was twisted logic, but Anko's mind was twisted to suit it.

Orochimaru's right hand came up and caught Anko's fist, and he began to twist her wrist, a cruel smirk appearing as he aimed to cause Anko agony, but she wasn't going to go down that easily. Her feet lifted off the ground and her body spun in a blur with her wrist, her foot coming around to try and knock the back of Orochimaru's head. He hissed in annoyance and let go of her wrist, bringing up an arm and blocking her foot easily. She bounced back, landing on the ground with lithe movements, before charging at the deadly snake again.

This time Orochimaru retreated, wanting to take their little fight to somewhere with a bit more space. If she was going to fight against him then he wanted to teach her who was in control as painfully as possible, which meant he needed more space for his snakes and other Jutsu.

They exchanged the bare minimum of blows throughout the halls as Orochimaru guided her further and further into his base where his training grounds lay. Anko was relentless, trying to find a weakness in Orochimaru's defence and offense, but it seemed he was still toying with her as he lead her deeper into the darkness of the base. She kicked, punched, dodged, blocked, but there just didn't seem to be enough space. Finally Orochimaru smirked and disappeared in a blur outside a large metal door.

Anko approached the door, panting and trying to regain her breath. She pushed it open with a hard glint in her eye, ready to end this. She flinched when the glare of a light blinded her momentarily. Her eyes quickly adjusted and she found herself staring at a large training ground.

_This was underground! _God, Orochimaru had too much time on his hands. Anko saw her old sensei standing at the other end of the training ground, a confident smirk on his face. She'd wipe that smug expression right off his face, and it would feel **great.** Anko cracked her knuckles, a grin slipping across her face, and then she walked to the place on the field opposite her sensei; the bloodlust was bubbling to the surface. They were about twenty metres away from each other, more than enough room for a fight. Now Orochimaru wouldn't be able to run away.

"Get ready, Orochimaru!" Anko shouted, only to receive a cruel laugh in return.

"I already am, my dear, but are you?" he asked, intending to throw her off guard, but she didn't take the bait. Instead she shook her head.

"I've been getting ready for _years,"_ she hissed, and then charged. Her hands were a blur as she made rapid hand seals, and three snakes were shot from her short sleeve. They swiftly circled along the length of Anko's arm before shooting off at the Snake Sannin. Their length was beyond normal to traverse the whole twenty metres, but these weren't natural snakes. Orochimaru made his own hand seals and suddenly Anko found her eyes watering. A large gust of wind had burst from where Orochimaru stood and Anko's snakes were repelled and ultimately killed by the sharp force of the airstream. Anko was then buffeted back, her feet sliding a few centimetres back as it threatened to knock her over. The wind was relentless, and Anko's arms came up in a cross to shield her face.

She was slightly ticked off that Orochimaru had so easily gotten rid of her snakes, so instead of fighting with offensive Jutsu she decided to use other means to get close and try Taijutsu on her ex-sensei. Creating the necessary hand seals, Anko's form was replaced with a piece of wood. It was swept backwards by the wind that began to die down upon Anko's disappearance. Orochimaru's golden orbs swept the area for a sign of Anko, but he had to quickly lean his head backwards when the light reflected off something metal coming at him.

_Slice. _The kunai Anko had thrown hit the ground and wedged itself into the dirt. Orochimaru's head came back forwards as he grinned sadistically. Anko landed on the ground a little while to his left, eyes wide as a stinging feeling was registered in her left cheek. Her index finger came up and ran itself along the length of her cheek, along a cut there. She brought back her finger and looked at the blood smeared across it as disbelief registered on her face, but then she noticed a second kunai embedded in the wall behind her. _So he'd thrown one too._ The only difference was that his had hit and hers had not.

"Come now, Anko, you'll have to do a lot better than that if you want to beat me," Orochimaru chided, mocking her. Anko pretended to frown, but then enjoyed the quick confused look on Orochimaru's face before he ducked, a foot swinging around where his head had been. The cut Anko disappeared in a billow of smoke, merely a clone, as the real Anko now engaged Orochimaru in hand-to-hand combat. She leapt back as Orochimaru's own foot came kicking at her, her sandals sliding along the ground and bringing up dust as she landed. Her hand felt back and grabbed the kunai her clone had thrown and she tossed that at Orochimaru as a distraction as she ran back at him.

Orochimaru caught the metallic projectile between two fingers, chuckling as his old student got more and more interesting as the battle progressed, but he was still only toying with her. He had to discard the weapon immediately though to block a series of punches thrown at him by Anko. She was still weak, and he'd teach her that soon enough.

He was interested though, very slightly, to know how much she'd improved since they'd been in the Land of the Sea all those years ago. He wondered if she'd improved at all; the fighting style she was using now contained reminders of how she'd fought back in his care. It amused him that even now she still used the techniques and fighting style he'd taught her, but the first teachings were the ones that stuck best. And anyway, only a fool would discard any kind of teaching he, the great Orochimaru, had taught them.

Orochimaru blinked as he felt Anko's leg try to sweep him off his feet. He'd been preoccupied with her fists and not paid her legs any attention, and now he was paying the price. He felt his heels catch her leg, but he successfully jumped over it and managed to deliver a punching blow to her mid-section. Anko was blown back, hitting the ground roughly, but she was not down and out. She **refused **to **ever** be down and out to Orochimaru.

She climbed back to her feet, determination blazing in her eyes. Gai would have been proud of her; she remembered meeting the funny guy at a bar once. He'd been striking, and had never completely left her memory, but she hadn't seen him again since then, maybe once or twice. But now wasn't the time for memories, and Anko focused on the here and now. She bit her thumb and made hand seals, casting her hand to the ground as a large gust of wind enveloped her along with thick white smoke. It swirled around her and spiralled to the skies, or in this case, the ceiling of the large training ground.

When it cleared away a huge snake towered above Orochimaru, baring its venomous fangs at the pale-skinned Sannin. It was five metres away from touching the ceiling, its body as thick and strong. However Orochimaru had mimicked her actions at the time she'd done them and Anko's snake found itself rivalled by two more snakes summoned by Orochimaru.

"Show-off," Anko muttered, standing on the large head of her snake. Orochimaru's snakes were ultimately a metre taller and thicker than hers, but Orochimaru still stood on the ground. Anko surveyed her opponents with strategic eyes, thinking of a way to get past them. She decided there would have to be sacrifices, meaning, her snake would have to die taking the other two with it, and then she would be able to get to Orochimaru.

A battle cry tore from her lips as her snake launched itself at its brethren, volumes of dust choking the ground as their mighty bodies slid along it. Anko found herself kneeling on the snakes head, trying to keep her balance whilst putting chakra in the parts of her body touching the snake, ensuring she didn't fall off. Her snake spiralled around the body of the first snake; the reptile had attacked her, shooting forward only to be captured in her own snake's tight embrace. Squeezing the enemy snake, it choked it to death, but its comrade wasn't far from saving it. Anko's snake hissed angrily as big fangs sunk into its body, but instead of letting go it unravelled its tail and brought it up speedily towards the snake biting it.

The tip of the tail easily shot through the back of the snake's skull, killing it instantly. The fangs loosened on Anko's snake's body and the mighty body slid to the ground, the snake dead. Anko meanwhile shouted out a warning to her own snake, having beheld the snake constricted by hers shedding its skin to get free. By the time its great head had turned to look at the last opposing snake, it had been struck, its huge body crashing into the wall of the training ground. Anko cried out, trying to shield herself from danger whilst staying on her snake. It had left a large indentation on the wall, and cracks had spread across the rock, but since there was only solid rock behind the wall nothing broke down. Debris crumbled to the earth along with the snake, and Anko's body juddered at the impact of the reptile's body hitting the ground.

Orochimaru had de-summoned his dead snake, its un-living presence no longer needed. Now there was just Orochimaru's snake and Anko's grounded snake, as well as those who had summoned them, of course. Before Anko's snake could get back up the enemy had surged towards them; it wound itself around Anko's snake's body and had started constricting it to death like Anko's snake had tried on it moments before. Anko had no kunai and string to use her Dragon Fire Technique, and summoning another snake was pointless.

_Just kill them both, _came the dark, eerie voice at the back of Anko's head. She obliged, although not completely; this was where the sacrifice came.

Anko used the same tactic she had used in the Hokage's office, utilising the Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique to set alight her own snake and thus the enemies snake as well. She leaped off her snake as the flames quickly spread across its body, causing the animal to screech in pain as it slowly died. The flames spread to Orochimaru's snake's body and that too screeched as it wrestled and died with Anko's. The two reptiles hit the ground minutes later, dead.

Orochimaru was watching with silent approval. To just kill off her own snake like that to take down the enemy, he was proud, to say the least. It was tactical, and smart; he didn't care for anyone's life but his own, so his snakes were just more pawns to help him achieve his dreams, and it appeared as if Anko was doing the same thing with this battle. A cloud of dust enveloped the area as the two giant snakes disappeared. Anko was amidst that cloud of dust, invisible to him, or was she? Maybe she forgot that he too had used the Jutsu Anko had found in his lab. It was one of the main reasons his snake-like features were so prominent. His own infrared sensing found Anko quickly.

"Have you gotten paler?" Orochimaru asked coyly, his hand catching Anko's foot that had launched at his chest; she'd stealthily moved so he didn't detect her before launching what she thought was a surprise attack. He threw Anko backwards and she leaned her body weight backwards, flipping over so her hands landed on the ground and left her in a hand-stand position. She then pushed off her hands and travelled backwards a further metre, landing on her feet. She was panting, tired from her efforts, and every time she'd cast a Jutsu her Curse Mark had tingled and pained her. Orochimaru however looked fine, as if he hadn't even been fighting at all. Anko was determined to make him put in a little effort.

She disregarded his comment about her skin colour. She hadn't looked in a mirror lately, and didn't want to if it meant the after effects of the Jutsu were actually taking effect. It would spell bad things for her appearance, and make her look that little bit more like Orochimaru. She wanted to vomit at the thought.

Clasping her hands together, Anko made more hand seals. She ignored the stinging feeling in her neck and kept her eyes on Orochimaru as two solid clones appeared next to her. One of the clones ran forward directly at Orochimaru, and the real Anko and the other clone spread out to the left and right of him. Orochimaru frowned, not recognising this strategy of hers. If she pulled off a decent enough manoeuvre then he might actually believe she'd improved her fighting skills. He smirked as he realised what was happening. He watched out of the corners of his eyes as the clone and Anko made hand seals and used the Hidden Shadow Snake Hands to try and capture him. Meanwhile the other clone had jumped into the air, pulling back a fist to punch him. Then he sensed her.

His head turned in shock as he felt someone approaching him from behind. The real Anko was suddenly on his back, arms and legs wrapping around him to hold him in place. How had she...? The clones' Hidden Shadow Snakes Hands were a success and six green reptilians had wrapped around Orochimaru's arms, restricting his movement and preventing him from using any Jutsu. His mind was working frantically to figure out what Anko had done, but he'd forgotten the last clone in his shock. Anko jumped off his back as a hard fist collided with Orochimaru's face. Against the almighty Orochimaru, Anko's clones' punch did hardly anything, however it left a deep mark further down than what the average eye could see. He was... impressed, intrigued, _angry. _Angry that she had managed to strike him, angry that he'd let his guard down and allowed this to happen.

Anger battled his usually calm and confident demeanour as Orochimaru hit the ground, the snakes from Anko's Jutsu sliding off after he'd impacted with the earth. The three clones and Anko now stood above him, all panting, but all looking pretty damn chuffed. The real Anko had the biggest smirk on her face she'd ever had before in her life, and it made Orochimaru want to kill her. He noticed something then that made it all click into place. One of the clones' necklaces was missing.

"Ha... I really didn't think you'd fall for that," Anko puffed out, suppressing the grin that wanted to take over her smirk. "But... I guess working on it paid off. You see... whilst in the dust I summoned a clone and transformed into my own necklace, which my clone then wore. It came out at you, and then summoned two more clones to tackle you from the front and side, whilst the clone wearing me came at the other side. You can't look everywhere... Orochimaru... and there was a blind spot in your sight that meant my clone could throw the necklace behind you without you seeing it. I transformed back to my normal self... and attacked," she revealed, the grin slipping through now.

Orochimaru was livid. One of Anko's clones had retrieved the kunai Orochimaru had dropped earlier to block Anko's attack, and after handing it over to Anko she walked toward Orochimaru. She dropped down to his level, pointing the tip to Orochimaru's neck.

"Game over," she stated. Orochimaru smirked, and... turned to mud. "No!" Anko hissed, standing back up quickly. It had been a Mud Clone all this time! Anko felt panic rise in her chest as her three clones suddenly disappeared in clouds of smoke, destroyed. She looked around for Orochimaru, but he was either moving too fast, or just staying out of sight. Hold on; _hold on!_ She wasn't going to let that Jutsu go to waste! She extended out her infrared sensing and located Orochimaru, and he was coming right towards her! She made hand seals in time for her body to turn to wood as a kunai sliced across where she had been. It would have left a bad wound if it had hit; was Orochimaru sore about her managing to land a hit? She didn't think he was toying with her anymore.

Anko had moved to appear in the air above the training ground, seeing Orochimaru stop after she'd disappeared. His eyes were scanning for her, but it was only two seconds before she fell on top of him that he finally looked up and saw her. He raised his hands to catch her and throw her as Anko tried to grab a hold of him and use her momentum to pull him to the ground. Orochimaru won out, in a firmer stance than Anko. She was sent crashing to the ground, breathing heavily with her neck throbbing.

Anko didn't know what to do anymore. She didn't think she could move. She was beaten, battered, and so tired. Her neck hurt like crazy and she was beginning to get exhausted of chakra. She'd set out this morning to kill Orochimaru, but now it seemed like an impossible feat. She realised it always had been, but that didn't mean she couldn't try, right? That didn't mean she couldn't stand up to him, couldn't try and kill him, couldn't get back up every time and keep coming back at him until he finally fell? She pushed off the ground and stood up, facing Orochimaru as she tired of energy.

Orochimaru knew Anko was reaching her limits, or at least, the limits she limited herself to having. He knew she would be feeling pain in her neck from the Curse Mark. It was aching to be let free, to take over and give Anko the power to defeat him, but she was stubborn. In a way, he liked that about her, but at the same time it was stopping her from achieving her full potential. Orochimaru watched Anko stand up yet again, and he really began to re-think his earlier thoughts.

When he'd first seen her again, he hadn't intended to come back for her. He'd watched her since then, and he'd seen her perform the Jutsu he'd invented, and embrace her own darkness. When he'd told her he'd seen a piece of himself in her, it was that dark personality she'd recently embraced that was what he'd seen in her. Now it was coming to the surface he couldn't be happier. But she still hadn't lived up to his expectations. She hadn't impressed him yet. But now; watching her perform combos, tricks and Jutsu of high calibre, watching her get up over and over again to keep on fighting, it had stirred something inside of him. And then when she'd actually managed to hit him, even when he had just been toying with her, it had confirmed the stirring feelings. He wanted her again.

Anko knew she couldn't perform any more Jutsu. The Curse Mark was paining her more than it had before now, and the dark voice at the back of her head was screaming at her to just give in to its power and use it. That it was the only way. That she'd die if she didn't use it. But she couldn't, or at least wouldn't. Anko staggered towards Orochimaru, her clumsy footsteps turning into a run as she began another charge, but Orochimaru was done with her now. He made a hand seal.

"Enough," he commanded, and Anko felt her body ripple with pain, all originating from her Curse Mark. She cried out as her neck throbbed, and collapsed to the ground, unable to move another step towards Orochimaru. What was this? She hadn't known that he could control her so easily with the Curse Mark and it made her feel so weak, and so powerless against him as he walked towards her broken figure. He towered above her, her hurt eyes tracking his; ignoring the filthy smirk that had appeared on his face again. Anko broke eye-contact as a pained moan escaped her, her hand already having found its way to her mark. She gripped it tightly, knuckles turning white with the pressure. Her eyes were clenched shut now as she coped with the pain of her Curse Mark, when finally it began to recede.

She chanced opening her eyes, only to see Orochimaru crouched in front of her. She tried to muster up her will to fight, her determination to kill him, but the drive had fast disappeared with the pain of her Curse Mark a few seconds ago. She could only glare at him. Orochimaru chuckled. Yes, he wanted her to be his again. She _was _his, and only his, but he wanted her to know that. He couldn't have her running around trying to kill him every day. It was tiresome and would cost him too much effort. He needed to make her completely cut her ties with the Leaf Village, although a few short weeks with him and his dark influence should easily do the trick. His golden orbs ran hungrily up and down Anko's body, but she was far too pre-occupied with the tingling pain in her neck to notice.

"Ah, Anko. You break ties with those who called you a 'friend', you go against your village and take on the title of Missing Nin, you kill other ninja from Konoha to escape, and then when the one person in the entire world who accepts you offers to give you a home, a place in the world again, you try to kill them. You really are one of a kind," he chuckled. They seemed to be doing this a lot lately, with Anko on the ground and Orochimaru crouching beside her before he would touch her face. His pale fingers cupped her chin forcefully, although gently, and he tilted her head from left to right, inspecting it silently. He liked the fire in her eyes, although with each second it was growing dimmer. For some reason, everything about her now interested him.

He could see the after-effects of the Jutsu coming through now. Her skin was just a slight shade paler, a very light purple could be noted if you looked hard enough at the corner of her eyes, although it wasn't very noticeable at the moment, and the brown of her eyes was darkening somewhat in the middle where he assumed there would be slit pupils after an amount of time. He smirked, bringing her head forwards so she was looking directly at him.

His golden eyes were mesmerizing, entrancing, and she'd gotten lost in them every time so far when she'd looked at them. Now was not an exception. She became speechless, thoughtless, when her eyes locked with his, and she didn't register a thing outside of those hypnotic golden hues... except for the kiss.

Anko snapped abruptly back to reality when she felt Orochimaru's lips brush over her own. Her first instinct was to pull away, to get as far away from the man as possible and vomit, but his strong fingers kept her still. Her eyes had opened wide with shock, staring at the man she'd detested for so long. He was so close to her now, his presence overwhelming, and Anko couldn't do a thing to stop him.

There was something else to this madness though. Anko... didn't want him to pull away. _What the hell am I thinking? Push him away! Kill him! _But she couldn't. Orochimaru's eyes had a triumphant glint in them as he saw Anko's internal struggle, and he pushed the battlefield in favour of himself when he suddenly returned to her full force. His lips crushed against hers, and Anko's breath hitched in her throat. He expertly kissed her, the passion smouldering Anko as she tried to keep a hold of her sanity. She couldn't let go... she couldn't...

Her arms lifted and wrapped around Orochimaru's neck, pulling him closer to her as she returned his kiss. Her eyes closed as she gave in to the snake; the tips of Orochimaru's mouth curved into a victorious smirk as he drew back slightly, causing Anko's facial expression to drop slightly in disappointment.

"You are mine," Orochimaru whispered into Anko's ear, causing an involuntary shudder to arise from her. Anko could only breathe now, words lost to her. Her lips itched for more Orochimaru, whilst her brain screamed at her to escape, to stop, to not give into him, but it was too late and her pleasured feelings dulled the screaming to an incoherent mumble. She thoughtlessly nodded her head in response to Orochimaru's words, her arms trying to pull the man back to her, but he was strong enough to effortlessly resist; he would decide when they kissed; he had the control.

"Good girl," Orochimaru said, pleased, and then gave Anko what she wanted, whether she was aware of wanting it or not. He let go of her chin now he knew she wouldn't resist, and then kissed her at the top of her neck. He trailed kisses down towards a particularly sensitive spot on Anko's body; her Curse Mark twitched as Orochimaru's fangs drew ever closer. Anko could feel him going near the mark, and her breath caught slightly in her throat. She couldn't move though, only let an idiotic smile rise to her face as she enjoyed Orochimaru's touch. It was all so _wrong,_ but so, _so_ right.

Suddenly Anko cried out as Orochimaru's sharp fangs pierced her skin, just beneath where her Curse Mark was. It didn't cause the horrific pain she'd experienced when she was eleven, but it caused her Curse Mark to send a wave of pain throughout her body, reacting to the bite of the one who had placed it on Anko's skin. Her cry trailed off as Orochimaru pulled his fangs out of her neck, drawing blood as they left. Orochimaru's fingers had found Anko's hair now, playing through the strands whilst he spoke out softly to her.

"You like my touch, don't you my dear? I'm willing to bet that you also like my blood as much as I like yours..." he grinned sadistically as his tongue licked around his lips. Anko had never tasted Orochimaru's blood, although she had desperately wanted to for the past years, wanting to spill it as she killed him once and for all. Now tasting his blood fell into a completely different context. Orochimaru's tongue trailed out of his mouth, running along the length of her shoulder before finally licking up the droplets of blood that had escaped the bite. Anko shuddered at the feeling, and finally managed to say her first words.

"You... brat... I wouldn't know if I liked your blood, would I? I've never... _tasted_ it..." she spat out, emphasizing the word tasted as if she were hinting something. Orochimaru picked up on it, grinning as his tongue fell back into his mouth, savouring the sweet, tangy taste of Anko's blood.

"Well then, why don't you try it?" he suggested slyly, holding up a finger to his mouth. He bit it sharply, causing the skin to break and blood to flow. He held it before Anko's eyes, watching her become mesmerized by it, and then he smeared it across his own lips. Anko realised his game, but she was all too ready to play it, wanting to know what he tasted like. What _Orochimaru_ tasted like.

Her lips were on his in seconds, kissing him passionately as her tongue ravaged his lips and the blood on them. Her tongue was quickly bloodied, and the taste was actually _nice._ Anko grinned wildly, her expression almost feral as she tasted Orochimaru. His blood was sweet but quite sour, and she loved it. Her bloodlust poured off her in waves, wanting to taste more of Orochimaru's blood.

Orochimaru took advantage of Anko's open mouth and his tongue shot into the fray, meeting Anko's and leading a fiery dance with it as they tasted and enjoyed one another. He was quite impressed with his old student. It seemed fighting skills weren't the only thing she'd picked up and learnt over the past few years. However, all things had to come to an end, and he wanted to leave Anko lusting for more. He drew back, causing Anko to whimper.

"No, don't," she moaned, but Orochimaru had already let go of her and was standing up, a cruel smile on his lips.

"I'll leave you to find your way back to your room, my dear. I have business to attend to, however, I'm sure we'll be seeing each other again soon," he hinted, a hungry glint in his eye. Anko didn't reply, her crestfallen expression watching Orochimaru as he turned and walked away, out of the training ground. She was left alone on the ground, her tongue tasting Orochimaru's blood and her body lusting for the man she'd once called her sensei. She wanted more of him. She _needed_ more of him. The feelings were driving her insane. She slowly got to her feet, a little dazed from the experience she'd just had, and then made her own way out of the hall.

Anko wandered to the exit and pushed open the door, her own tiredness coming back to her full force as she staggered out into the hall. That fight had taken a lot out of her, and her Curse Mark throbbed. She ran an idle finger over the two bite marks there, thinking hard about what had just happened. She's kissed Orochimaru. She'd actually _kissed _him. Anko didn't know whether to be repulsed or not, because although her mind was telling her that she'd been crazy and shouldn't have done it, her body and heart lusted for him again.

She leaned against a wall, breathing deeply. Her thoughts were scattering quickly, and she wanted to get to her bed quickly to lie down before she ran out of energy and became dependant on the Curse Mark. She refused to give in to that. She refused to give in to its dark powers when she'd done so well in her fight with Orochimaru without it.

Using the wall as a support Anko continued to walk down the hallways. They stretched on forever, and Anko quickly got lost. She didn't know where she was going after a while, instead just trying to find any place at all to sleep. After walking for what seemed like hours, although in reality were only minutes, she found a door at the end of a hallway and approached it. Inside the room Orochimaru sensed his ex-student approaching. He chuckled, placing aside his scalpel. He then waited until she was right near the door before making a hand sign.

Outside, Anko jerked, the pain in her neck becoming unbearable. She stiffened before falling to the ground, head hitting the cold stone floor before she fell unconscious. The door she'd been walking towards opened with a creak and Orochimaru stepped out. He picked up Anko in his arms and chuckled again.

"I can't just have you walking in on my experiments, my dear Anko. You're state of mind is far too delicate for that just now," he said, before he started walking down the halls. He was going to take Anko to her room, seeing as she'd earned the lift from her efforts today. He kept his golden eyes on Anko the whole time, staring at what he hoped to be his future vessel. She was quite beautiful.

Orochimaru laughed. He was a master at manipulating people's emotions; he'd developed it into something of an art. He'd also developed his skill at manipulation whilst learning forbidden Tensei Ninjutsu from Shinnō. Now he'd demonstrated what he'd learnt through manipulating Anko. A simple kiss was enough to tip her over the edge and fall into his grasp. After all, no matter what she thought or felt, she always had craved the touch and attention of her old sensei.

He entered Anko's room, placing her on her bed like the night before. The battle had taken them through the afternoon and it was nearing night time; Orochimaru assumed Anko wouldn't wake up until the next day. He stood over her momentarily, gazing into her innocent face. He would destroy that innocence, but that wouldn't get rid of the angelic beauty she had. In a way, he was glad about that. Orochimaru closed his eyes, a small chuckle escaping him, before he leaned over and planted a kiss on Anko's forehead.

"Goodnight, my dear," he said, before walking out of the door and turning off the light as he went, shrouding Anko in darkness; his darkness.

* * *

I realised that I didn't thank people who reviewed in my last chapter. ^^; I apologise, so I'll just list you all here instead. :D

Thank you, **NinjaSheik, Ryunn Kazan, ankofan, fishyfella, Wolf, Jigoku-Dayu93, **and **inky77 **for the reviews. ^^ It's very much appreciated and keeps me motivated. :]


	9. Friends

The darkness of the interrogation room was bone-chilling, the weight of the shadows pushing down on all sides, constricting the lungs of the victims and strangling them with worry and guilt. A single metal table was set up in the middle of the room, two chairs tucked in beneath it. However today people were sitting in these chairs; a tape recorder was set up on the table, recording the conversation between the two people there. One was a broad, toughened man with two long scars running down his face. He had eyes that were hardened with the gruesome events he'd experienced in his life, and had a rough frown on his face.

He was the god in this room. He commanded all.

The other man was a skimpy little creature with a pallid, worried expression on his face. He was fear-stricken and trembling, eyes wide and wavering. His pupils shot everywhere, at one time keeping an eye on the one who was obviously the interrogator, then the tape recorder, and then the exit. However, he knew there was no escaping this man. He was one of the most renowned interrogators in the world, and he always got his answers.

"Please! No! I swear I've never had any contact with Orochimaru!" he screamed, his panic overtaking all of his other emotions. His hands twitched, and it was obvious he'd recently lost a few fingers. The bloody stumps looked painful, and now the man looked close to hyperventilating. Ibiki Morino stood up from his cold chair and walked around the table towards the victim who was cowering away from the fearsome man's glare. He held up a sharp knife, speaking out in his gruff voice.

"We need this information. We've had multiple tip-offs about your involvement with Orochimaru, and if you don't tell us then I will cut off every single one of your fingers and then move to... other areas," he threatened, watching his victim's eyes widen with fear as he understood where Ibiki was threatening; his manhood was the most important thing to him other than his life. He nearly fell back off his chair trying to get away, but suddenly Ibiki's strong, firm hands were holding him into his chair, the knife dangerously close to the man's neck. One slip up and he would die.

"Now, tell me what you did with him," Ibiki commanded. The man paled considerably more as the knife ran along his neck, although it didn't cut into him, and then ran down towards his shaking hand. The man was stuck in a lose-lose situation. He could have his manhood stripped from him as well as his fingers, refusing to give up information, or he could tell, but then pay the price by receiving death from Orochimaru. Even then, the pale-skinned man would probably have an assassin come and kill him, not wanting to bother killing him himself.

Beads of sweat rolled down the man's face as he contemplated his choices. He then let out a pitiful whimper, tears welling in his eyes. Ibiki would have rolled his eyes, but this was a serious interrogation. The man may think that they'd stall this meeting until later if he started crying, but he was wrong. Ibiki's hand moved in a flash and suddenly another lump of flesh hit the metal table, another finger gone. This one was the middle finger on the man's right hand. The sound of flesh hitting metal was followed by a scream of pain by the victim.

Before he could even tend to his bleeding stump Ibiki's knife had trailed to the second-to-last finger on the man's right hand. He pushed the knife slowly into the finger, causing a trail of bloody tears to roll along the steel edge, but the man finally gave in.

"STOP! Stop! Please... no more..." he whimpered, tears rolling down his cheeks. Ibiki didn't pull back the knife, waiting for the man to spill his answers before doing so. "I'll tell you everything..." the man continued, still hoping Ibiki would pull back his weapon. Receiving no such niceties he concluded he'd have to actually tell the interrogator information before he was let loose from his world of pain.

"Orochimaru said he required bodies... humans... slaves," he said, trailing off at the end. "I sell slaves, but... Orochimaru! He threatened me so I gave him slaves for free!" he cried. Ibiki pulled out his knife a little, urging the man on silently.

"He didn't say how many he wanted, so I just gave him what he wanted when he asked for it. I don't know what he did with the slaves. I don't even know where he took them too! He just told me to leave them in a certain place every time where he would collect them. That's all I know..." he said. Ibiki wasn't impressed. He knew next to nothing... however.

"First of all, you do know the buying and selling of slaves is illegal?" Ibiki stated gruffly, causing the man to flinch. He nodded slowly, and Ibiki continued. "We'll deal with that later, but secondly, and most importantly, we need to know where it was you put the slaves so Orochimaru could pick them up. And don't lie, or I'll see to it personally that you're put to a slow and painful death," Ibiki threatened. The man wailed out loud, scared beyond his wits.

"It... It w- was usually in the f- forestry outside K- Konoha..." he stuttered.

"Where about? Can you lead us there?" Ibiki demanded.

"It was always a different place... but I can show y- you... the most... recent..." he said, a breath of relief leaving him as Ibiki's knife finally left his flesh. The pain was still there though, and he was still frightened to death. Ibiki was satisfied with that for now. If there was anything else he was keeping from them then he would find it out later. This wasn't going to be the man's final time in the interrogation room.

If they were led to this place in the forest then they might be able to find a trace of Orochimaru and trail it back to wherever he was staying, or still is staying. And with that they might find Anko.

_Anko._ _You stupid girl. To join with the number one enemy of Konoha is the highest act of betrayal in my books. I'll take my time interrogating you when you're finally caught._ His body tensed slightly as he thought this, a snarl catching his lips. He'd liked the girl. She had passion, and was fiery and relentless. He'd seen so much potential in her, but now she was a traitor.

Ibiki returned his thoughts to the man in front of him. He realized the man had passed out from stress and fright. He let out a sigh, and then looked at a hidden camera in the shadows.

"Call in the medics to heal him up so he'll be fine leading us through the forest. Then lock him away," he commanded, waiting impatiently as two medics appeared through the doorway of his interrogation cell. They cleared away the blood on his table and the chopped off fingers, and then set to work moving the unconscious body of Ibiki's latest victim. Soon he was gone, and Ibiki was alone.

"I really hate resorting to cutting people up for answers," Ibiki said wearily, putting away his knife and turning off the tape recorder. He loved interrogation, of course, but he wanted to experiment with other ways as well. Mental pain could be interesting. He decided to try and work on that in the near future.

"Send in the next person for interrogation," Ibiki called out, and heard annoyed voices approaching the room as his next victim arrived. Through the door came a dark-haired woman with crimson eyes. She was a beauty, and Ibiki could understand if Asuma would take a liking to her in future years. He didn't greet Kurenai like a friend, merely waving at her to sit down at the table. He took up a chair opposite her and started the tape recorder again before staring hard at her for a minute or two. Kurenai instantly got on edge after the minute of sitting in silence, and finally broke the mute to stop herself panicking.

"What's this about, Ibiki? I've never done anything wrong," she demanded, a frown creasing her features. Ibiki sighed. He'd seen her reactions to his glare. It had amused him, because he understood how effective mental torture could possibly be. Yes, he definitely had to start working on that.

"Kurenai, I'm not accusing you of anything. I also don't intend on torturing you, however I am going to take this meeting seriously and ask you questions I need answering. It concerns... Anko," he stated, causing Kurenai to stiffen in her chair. Yes, _Anko._ She was so angry at Anko, and so disappointed. She'd thought that Anko was starting to get on track with her life, seeing as she'd acquired a good bunch of friends. Her, Kakashi, Ibiki, Asuma, and poor Iruka. It would break his heart when he found out about Anko. Kurenai just couldn't believe that Anko had defected, and to go with _Orochimaru _no less! Kurenai had always thought that Anko had hated him, but now she just didn't know what Anko had been doing this whole time.

"What about her?" Kurenai replied through gritted teeth. Anko had been such a good friend to her, and Kurenai had even considered her to be her best, and she felt betrayed now. She felt like Anko had just used her to gain a standing in Konoha and then left her as if their friendship meant nothing.

_Sort of like how Orochimaru used her and then tossed her aside,_ Kurenai realized. Kurenai understood the feeling inside her that longed for Anko to return to Konoha, so they could be friends again, and she wondered whether Anko had ever felt that same feeling. _Had she always longed for Orochimaru deep down?_

"Firstly, I want to know if you'd noticed any suspicious behaviour in Anko leading up to her defect," Ibiki asked. Kurenai thought back, and then shook her head.

"No. I thought the snake might have gotten her down at the party, but she picked herself up and went on a date with Iruka. I thought she'd be fine, but apparently she'd been in turmoil over all this. It's Orochimaru. He came back and messed with her. The only thing was, when Kakashi disappeared from the hospital, I saw Anko run into the room to see for herself that he'd gone. She then disappeared, but the despairing look on her face made me realize she cared deeper for her friends here then we first thought... And this just makes me frustrated because I don't understand why she would leave!" Kurenai burst out, trying to put two and two together, but when it came to Anko she was always far too complex to simply work out.

CRASH!

Kurenai jumped in her seat as her head shot up, looking at the doorway of the interrogation room. Had something happened? Was someone coming to alert them that they'd found Anko? Ibiki hadn't even flinched, merely raising his head to stare at the person who had intruded on their meeting. However, on recognising who had come bursting in both their eyes widened with shock.

"Where is she?" Iruka asked himself, walking through a street in Konoha. He was worried about Anko and wanted to find her soon so he could apologize for shouting at her on their date the other day, and tell her... something... He also wanted to ask her if she was okay. After all, Orochimaru had appeared lately, destroying a part of Konoha at the same time. If Anko had found out then he didn't doubt she would be emotionally affected by it, and he also thought she might have gone to try and stop him herself. He hadn't seen Anko in a while now, and he was getting very worried.

"Excuse me, but have you seen Anko Mitarashi lately?" Iruka asked of a man who'd passed him in the street. The small male looked up at Iruka, and then snorted.

"The traitor? Ha! No," he said, and then tried to keep walking, but Iruka caught him by the arm. He'd gotten angry at the man's choice of words. Anko may have been Orochimaru's student, but that didn't mean she was a traitor to Konoha.

"Hey! Don't talk about Anko like that. She's a citizen of Konoha just like you and me!" Iruka growled back, annoyed. The man eyed him strangely.

"What have you been doing, living under a rock? Orochimaru appeared! And when he left, Anko went with him. That traitor should have been killed as soon as she stepped foot back in Konoha," he puffed, face starting to get red with anger. He'd always hated Anko, and had always known that she was bad like her sensei. Now he was merely proven right, meaning a guy down at the pub owed him quite a bit of money for losing their bet.

Iruka's eyes widened, disbelief welling up inside of him. He shook the man ever so slightly, his tone becoming desperate.

"What! No! Anko wouldn't betray Konoha! Sure she's been treated badly, but she has friends here who care for her! I care for her... But... she wouldn't! Orochimaru must have kidnapped her!" Iruka exclaimed, putting all of his hopes into his last sentence. Yes, Anko had been kidnapped by Orochimaru against her will and had been taken away. The man merely snorted again.

"If that's what you want to believe. Anko's a filthy traitor to me, the scum on my shoes. I couldn't care less about her being gone from Konoha. Good riddance, I say! Although I saw her standing on that big-arse snake with Orochimaru, not bound or anything; she left of her own free will, and I don't doubt she would have," the man finished. Then he freed his arm from Iruka's grasp and turned on his heel.

"Now, if you'd excuse me, I have somewhere to be," he said, and then walked off. Iruka was left standing alone in the street, trembling with rage and despair. Anko was gone! But _why! _Orochimaru had to have kidnapped her. For all the times she'd shown pure hatred for that man, she would never willingly go back to him. It was impossible.

Iruka mindlessly walked down the streets, not knowing where his feet were taking him. He was so shocked by the man's words, and he longed to see Anko again. He refused to believe that she would have left him, or even her other friends for that matter. He wondered what horrible things Orochimaru could be doing to Anko right now, and it made him shake. He would kill that Sannin, not just for taking Anko away from Konoha but for messing with her and taking away any chance of her having a normal life. It just wasn't fair for her.

Iruka stopped, looking up and noticing where he'd walked to. He was staring at Anko's apartment, and the place made his heart break a little. He wondered if the ANBU had searched it already. It didn't look any different from how Anko had last left it, so he decided to check it out himself and see. He walked up to the side of the apartment and pulled out a loose brick, taking out the spare key hidden within the gap. Then he replaced the brick and walked back to the front of the house, slotting the key into the keyhole and turning the metallic item. The door clicked and allowed Iruka passage into the apartment.

He stepped in and felt a wave of sadness hit him as he saw the familiar rooms. He remembered the many times he'd come over to Anko's house and endured her bad cooking; she only knew how to make dango, and anything else usually came out burnt or undercooked. They'd had many good times here, and a lot of laughs. But at the same time she'd always seemed a bit distant to him in her apartment, as if she was trying to hide some unknown feeling. It began to click into place how much more complex Anko was than what you first saw. She put on a brave face and endured the world with a grin, but in her apartment she seemed to let that façade drop and let her real emotions show. Iruka realized he'd been so ignorant to her true self before. He was... astounded.

He walked through the apartment, sliding a finger over pieces of furniture. She hadn't been here in at least a few days, he discovered from the amount of dust collecting on surfaces. He then entered her bedroom. The first thing he saw was her bed, and a particular item caught his attention on it. A smile spread across his face as he recognised the talisman he'd gotten her for her birthday. So she'd obviously valued it, and him, enough to put it up.

He walked over to the bedside and took the talisman off of her bed frame, slipping it into his pocket. He took a final look around the room before he left, although he knew he shouldn't go looking through her personal possessions. That was when his breath hitched, and he frowned in disbelief. What was this? Why did she have that? _Anko!_

Iruka's trembling hands wrapped around the plain photo frame that held the memory of a young Anko and her sensei. He stared at the picture, eyes wavering with despair as he looked at the young Anko, her face almost glowing with happiness as she stood beside her pale-skinned mentor. Orochimaru looked cold, and not as happy as his pupil. Iruka had an urge to throw the picture away and burn it, but... if Anko had kept it all this time then it was special to her, right?

But why was it special to her? Why did she care for this memory? Why did she care about _him_ at all! Iruka wanted to cry, but he held in his emotions instead. He had completely opposed that man, believing that Anko would never have gone with Orochimaru willingly. He'd believed in her, but if she still had a picture of her and Orochimaru, then didn't that mean she still held some affection for him? Could she really have gone with him willingly?

"NO!" Iruka yelled out, trying to assure himself that Anko was still very much a Leaf Ninja at heart. His grip on the photo frame was so intense that his knuckles had turned stark white. He rammed it out of sight and took it with him out of Anko's apartment, along with the talisman in his pocket. They were two things he wanted to take with him on his journey.

He wasn't going to sit around in Konoha, waiting for something to happen. He was going to get up and go. Find Anko, help her escape Orochimaru, and take her back to Konoha again. He was going to do it because... he loved her.

Kurenai had jumped out of her seat and embraced the figure in the doorway, her warm arms surrounding them in a tight hug. She was ecstatic and filled with joy at their arrival, all the bad news so far today washed away by their presence.

"Kakashi!" Kurenai cried out happily, pulling back on the hug for a second to help support him across the room. He was shaky, and drenched in sweat. He looked tired, but what was so urgent that he'd rushed here instead of staying and recuperating in hospital? Kurenai eased him into the chair she'd been sitting on opposite Ibiki, the interrogator having forgotten his main duty at the moment to rejoice his recovered friend with a smile. He still had the tape player on.

Kakashi was taking deep breaths, easing himself to try and get out what he wanted. He needed to speak urgently with the two before anyone else because they understood Anko better than most other people; it would have been good if Iruka had been here too, but he wasn't. Kakashi looked pain-stricken at Kurenai and Ibiki before speaking.

"O- Orochimaru!" he started, stuttering only because he had ended up taking a breath at the same time as speaking. "He took me away from the hospital to the Konoha library, killing the librarian there and scattering everything so he could make space for us. We fought, but... I was a fool," Kakashi said, ashamed. He had taken on a Sannin, and the battle had been over in minutes. He was no match for Orochimaru, and it would serve him well to remember it in the future. Kurenai was watching Kakashi intensely, and at the mention of Orochimaru Ibiki listened attentively as well. Kakashi looked... different though. Maybe it was because he wasn't wearing his mask. Kurenai thought he looked pretty damn attractive without the mask on, although he'd managed to find something to cover his Sharingan eye with so it didn't drain him of power.

"I lost... easily. He quickly overpowered me and I was left lying on the ground, clinging to my life. That was when... he spoke to me..." Kakashi recalled, the memory forming in his mind as clear as day. Kurenai and Ibiki leaned in closer, eager to hear, but at the same time terrified of what they might find out.

_Kakashi gasped with laboured breathing, trying not to pass out from the pain and stress of his battle with Orochimaru. What had he been thinking, taking on a Sannin like that? He may be strong, but he wasn't _that _strong. Orochimaru stood above him, not a scratch on his body. He inspected the bad wounds on Kakashi's body and then laughed cruelly, like the demon he was. Kakashi moaned, blocking out his torment. Then Orochimaru was talking._

"_Oh, Kakashi; you fight valiantly, but like a fool. It was clear right from the beginning that you lack the ability to beat me, or even touch me for that matter. And for that reason there was no hope for you... just like there will be no hope for Anko," he said, a sly smirk on his face. Kakashi stiffened, blocking out all forms of pain for that moment to hear Orochimaru speak. No, Anko. He couldn't let him get to her. Not again. It wasn't fair!_

"_Leave... Anko... alone..." Kakashi managed to growl out. Orochimaru chuckled darkly._

"_Or what? Don't threaten me, Kakashi, when you have no standings to do so," he said with a sneer. "I'm going to pay Anko a little visit soon, and when I do she will fall back into my grasp. I fully plan on manipulating her to my whim. It will be fun, I think, to watch her break upon seeing me again," he laughed again. Kakashi was disgusted. How could a man be so evil and twisted like that?_

"_Konoha... will find you, Orochimaru... They'll kill you, and Anko won't have to be haunted by your sickening face ever again..." Kakashi said, biting back a cry of pain as his ribs seared. He knew some of his ribs were broken. He prayed none of the bones would dig into his heart and kill him. He had to be careful not to move._

"_No, because you see, Kakashi, Konoha are too weak to catch me. They depend on 'love' and 'friendship' to find strength, whereas I focus on gaining power at any cost. That is why I am undefeatable and strong, compared to you weaklings here in the Leaf. Anko adored me too much as a child. She is attached, whether she thinks she is now or not. She will break, I can assure you, and then she will come with me when I leave here," he stated, watching Kakashi grow more stressed with each word he said._

"_I have plans for Anko, you see. She will make an interesting test subject, seeing as she was tough enough to survive my Curse Seal. I believe she has more potential as an experiment than as a student. She lacked the violent drive I was looking for," he stated casually. Kakashi hated the way Orochimaru addressed Anko as merely an experiment. He may not have been Anko's closest friend, but he cared about her enough to get very angry over this._

"_But do you know what her fate is, with me?" Orochimaru asked Kakashi, raising an eyebrow with a malicious smile to go with it. He wanted to torture Kakashi a little bit more before leaving him in a comatose state._

"_Death." Kakashi stated it as a fact, not as a question. However, was he wrong? Orochimaru was laughing again._

"_No, in fact, I have other plans than that. After I've finished a few experiments, I intend... on taking over her body." Orochimaru grinned wickedly as Kakashi jerked, consumed by pure anger at Orochimaru. He wouldn't let Orochimaru take Anko! He wouldn't let him take her over! "But before that," Orochimaru continued, "I plan on... persuading her, a little more," he said. Kakashi moved. He couldn't take this, lying there and listening to how Orochimaru was going to use intimacy to get Anko and then take her body. He tried to punch the Sannin, but in a flash of blood he was back on the ground, eyes wide open, his breathing slowing._

_Orochimaru wiped his hand of blood, sighing. Kakashi should have just stayed down. Now look where'd he gotten himself; if he didn't die, then he would surely be in a comatose state for a long time. He sensed Anko's approach to the library as she scaled the Hokage Monument. With a grin, he vanished._

Kakashi finished telling his story, a disgusted look on his face. Kurenai shared the same look, although the fear for her friend was evident. Ibiki had managed to keep his face straight, not showing any emotion behind his scarred mask of skin. They sat in silence for a minute, the only sound Kakashi's deep breathing, before Kurenai broke the silence.

"We need to get her back," she stated. It wasn't a debatable question.

"But how?" Ibiki asked simply, motioning towards Kakashi slightly. "Kakashi's in no fit state to go off on a mission, especially when it involves Orochimaru. Me and you, Kurenai, won't be able to take him on head on, and Tsunade has already set a squad out to find them." Ibiki closed his eyes in thought, allowing his words to sink in to the people around him. "We'll have to wait a few days and prepare, then go."

"What!" Kurenai exclaimed, slamming a fist on the table. "Who knows what Orochimaru might have done to Anko by then! We need to leave now!" she shouted, however was cut off when she heard Kakashi coughing. He had a hand on the metal table for support, coughing violently for a few seconds before falling silent. A bead of sweat dropped off his chin. Kurenai looked sadly at her comrade.

"Fine, we'll prepare first. Help me get Kakashi back to the hospital, Ibiki," she said quietly. They needed to speak to the Hokage about this, but Kakashi seemed to be thinking the opposite thing.

"Don't... tell the Hokage," he mumbled. "He doesn't understand... Anko... like us." Kurenai observed him briefly before nodding her consent. She'd briefly considered letting Iruka come with them, but decided it was too dangerous for him when he was so easily manipulated by his feelings for Anko. He would get himself killed. For that reason, she decided to keep him in the dark.

"Alright, Shiromaru, let's do this!" one of the Inuzuka on Tsunade's squad said, a grin on their face. He petted the big dog's head affectionately, its white fur ruffled by the man's hand. The other Inuzuka on the squad had paled at the mention of Orochimaru and had said they were too sick for the mission. One of the Hyuuga had also weaselled their way out of the mission by stating they had other affairs to deal with. Itachi had dismissed them with a shake of his head.

"They don't deserve to go on this mission," he'd said. Now the team was compromised of the Inuzuka, the Hyuuga, Itachi and Tsunade. Tsunade hadn't been too comfortable with the squad size anyway, so was happier with this. All four of them were standing just outside the gates of Konoha now. Work had been started on repairing Konoha's wall, and people were busy milling around it, helping in any way possible to get the wall looking as good as new as quickly as possible.

"Alright, Midori," she said, looking at the Inuzuka, "Murasaki," looking at the Hyuuga, "Itachi," Tsunade finished, looking at all three, "let's head out." She then turned and began to sprint off in the direction Anko and Orochimaru had fled in. All three of the ninja with her followed quickly, Midori's canine partner loping along beside its master. They entered the forestry surrounding Konoha, ignoring the training grounds where a few academy students were picking on a young yellow-haired boy, and kept up a good pace that allowed them to keep track of their surroundings whilst making good progress.

They were always aware of any hints that might suggest where Orochimaru had gone, and they stopped in places to let Murasaki check the area with his Byakugan and let Midori and Shiromaru use their noses and other senses to try and pick up any trails. It was strange, because although a giant snake had slithered through here, nothing was left behind to show for it. No crushed trees, no smells, no flaked off scales, nothing. It was infuriating, but at the same time made the hunt more fun, or so Midori kept saying.

"Found something," Itachi said finally, his eyes crimson with the pattern of his Sharingan on them. They'd been traversing through the treetops, and now stopped upon a thick branch. Everyone looked at Itachi, Tsunade stepping closer.

"What is it?" she asked, desperate to know. They hadn't found anything, and she was the most short-tempered of them all; she was literally itching to find something or else she'd punch down a tree in annoyance. Itachi closed his eyes and then pointed to his left.

"Down there is a kunai," he said, re-opening his eyes. Immediately Tsunade dropped from the tree, landing agilely on the ground before moving towards where Itachi had pointed out. They hadn't stopped in a little while, giving the Hyuuga and Inzuka no chance to pick up the presence of the projectile. Everyone quickly followed Tsunade, leaving the branch to go to ground level.

Tsunade frowned as she walked up to a small stack of leaves, barely concealing a steel object lying on the ground. The metal reflected Tsunade's image as she stood over it. She leant down and gently picked up the kunai, observing it before turning it over. She tensed.

"We're onto them," she said, holding up the kunai for the rest of her squad to see, showing them the kanji engraved onto the metal. They spelt out Anko. Tsunade looked at Itachi for more insight.

"Hmm... The way the kunai was lying on the ground suggests that it wasn't thrown, but more like dropped. Either Anko wants us to find her, or she's dropped it by accident. Maybe a ripped pocket and it fell out? I can understand why her clothing would be in tatters," Itachi said, staring at the kunai. He then let the Sharingan fade away, his eyes returning to normal. "Midori, try and pick up a scent," Itachi then commanded, earning a glare from Tsunade for being the one to give out an order. Despite him being out of place, Shiromaru and Midori came forwards, taking the kunai from Tsunade and turning it left right, up and down, sniffing it for a scent of Anko.

"Yeah! We got something!" Midori exclaimed, Shiromaru barking to confirm his words. The white-pelted canine's nose was quickly on the ground, trying to pick up a trail for them to follow. He then barked again and began to sprint off into the trees. An air of excitement became apparent and everyone quickly rushed off to follow Shiromaru, hoping that they'd find Orochimaru's lair.

Iruka was back in his apartment. He was sorting through his stuff, finding the bare necessities for his journey. He didn't doubt that it would take a long time to find Orochimaru and Anko, but he wanted to do it all as quickly as possible because he was afraid. He was afraid of what Orochimaru was doing to Anko, how he would be torturing her, how he would be breaking her like he'd done even when he wasn't there. Anko was too fragile, even he knew that when he didn't like to.

Walking out of the door of his apartment, he had a backpack slung over his shoulders, carrying food, drink and other basic survival supplies. He didn't want to rest, but it was illogical not to, so a small tent was packed as well. He'd taken the bare minimum, knowing that the lighter the load, the faster he could go. Although alongside the bare minimum he had the photo frame carrying the picture of Anko and Orochimaru and the talisman he'd gotten Anko for her birthday.

It was still daylight, and anyone that asked where he was going was told that he was going on a long mission. He couldn't tell the truth. He was sixteen for crying out loud! They'd stop him and then put him under house arrest for being so thoughtless. He was glad he didn't bump into Kurenai, Ibiki or Asuma. He didn't worry about Kakashi because he assumed the Copy-Nin was still in a coma, but the others would have guessed where he was going and stopped him too.

Thankfully he managed to get out of Konoha without anyone being suspicious, and soon was heading through the forestry, dashing from branch to branch to try and find a trail to bring him to Orochimaru's lair. He moved quickly, knowing the forest well enough to make his way through problem free for the time being. However, although he thought no one knew where he was going, someone did.

A wide smirk grew across Orochimaru's face at the news. This boy just didn't give up, did he? He effortlessly killed the spy who'd told him the news, not bothering to pay him like he was demanding, and walked over to his desk where scrolls cluttered it. He'd looked into the boy a little. He wasn't anything too special, but Iruka Umino was definitely someone that could influence Anko, judging by the slight feelings they shared.

He didn't like those feelings. In fact, he hated them. He hated that anyone but he could have his Anko. She belonged to him, like a toy; he could play with her, or he could break her, but either way she was his. Iruka threatened that hold he had over her, and so he planned to destroy those bonds, and he wanted Anko to do it herself. First, he would lure her further into his grip, and then he'd have her destroy Iruka mentally and physically.

Orochimaru had it all planned out. He also knew of Tsunade's squad, although they were following a false trail like he'd planned for them to. They wouldn't be able to find his base anyway, although it had disturbed him that Itachi Uchiha was on Tsunade's squad. If they did manage to find his base in the end, he wanted to have finished his Jutsu in time for Itachi. He licked his lips hungrily.

Itachi would be his in the end, the Sharingan would belong to him and he would learn every Jutsu in the world, but first thing first. No one could find his base on their own, so Orochimaru would help Iruka out. He'd lead him to the base; lead him to his death.

"I must be crazy," Iruka and Anko said at the same time.

"I've gone through Anko's apartment, taken an old picture she shouldn't even have kept, left Konoha without permission, left my friends, and am now trying to track down an S-Class Criminal I have no hope of defeating, all for the sake of Anko. Of course I'm crazy," Iruka said, although instead of that getting him down it spurred him into action, driving him on to complete his goal.

"I've left Konoha, killed a load of shinobi, betrayed my friends and village, gone with _Orochimaru, _fought him, and _kissed _him, all for what? Why? Of course I'm crazy," Anko said, lying on her bed in Orochimaru's base, staring at the ceiling as she mulled over her thoughts, wants, and _needs. _She hated to admit it, she really did, but at the moment she needed Orochimaru. To speak with him, perhaps, but that wasn't what her heart was telling her.

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Thank you, **NinjaSheik**,** Ryunn Kazan**,** ankofan**, **fishyfella**, **Jigoku-Dayu93**, **Szzzzzx**, **Yin-Yan-Yum-Yum**, **inky77**, and **LovexDoll **for the reviews. I can't believe I actually got nine reviews! :D I mean, that's more than any other chapter! I'm astounded. Thanks for putting in the effort to review though; it makes me feel really happy. ^^ You guys rock. I think I'll have to raise the rating of this fanfiction to M though. I think I might be writing my first lemon in the next chapter. o.o Wish me luck? :L

Also, I'd like your opinions. (: Do you want me to put scene breaks in so you can read the story better? Or are you all fine with the way it is now? C: Again, thanks for reading and reviewing guys. :]


	10. You Are Mine

**WARNING.  
**_The lord has blessed you with an entire chapter of **lemon**. You heard right. Now, I was extremely embarrased about posting this, and I've really had to swallow the gnawing feeling in my stomache that's telling me to delete this whole chapter and hide in a corner, just to show you some sexual shizzle with my darling Anko and Orochimaru. C: I also changed the rating of this fanfiction to M. I didn't think I would've ended up writing a lemon, so I had it as T. Now it's gone up. :L This is my first lemon, so seriously, go easy on me. D: Ya know, it's hard writing lemons when you're fourteen. ;-; I killed my innocence for you guys. Appreciate it. Now... read away. :D_

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Anko took in a deep breath, deciding on what to do. The door to her room wasn't locked anymore, so she was free to leave and walk around the base. She'd also been given new clothes, _not_ the remakes of what she'd worn as a child, but a repaired version of what she'd arrived at the base in. Anko had gotten dressed several minutes ago; she'd been lying on her bed for ages now, thinking and wondering, not actually knowing what she wanted to do.

She could describe the feeling in her stomach as having butterflies, but these must have been violent butterflies because they made her feel sick whilst trying to pull her to do something. It was an itch she couldn't cure. Orochimaru was her itch. She couldn't get her head around the fact she'd kissed him, and what annoyed her was that she couldn't honestly say she'd been lured into it.

Sure, he was sly and manipulative, and could have easily kissed her, but in the end she would have rejected him and tried to push him away if she'd truly hated it, right? But that wasn't what had happened.

She remembered the pleasured feelings that had welled up inside her, the lust for the man who had kissed her so unexpectedly, and if she'd hated him then they wouldn't have tongued. But they had, and she'd gone along with all of it happily. That was what annoyed her, because now she was in turmoil over her feelings.

Anko twisted over and punched her pillow violently, causing the object to wheeze unhappily as the air was pummelled out of it. Then she sighed and flopped down, her head sinking facedown into the comfy pillow. It was so, so wrong to feel any emotions like that for Orochimaru. Especially when she knew that it was just another form of control over her. He didn't, _couldn't_ feel any kind of love for anyone, especially not her. He just wanted her under his control, and he thought he could play with her emotions to do that.

But that was the problem. Deep down she thought she could hear herself telling her that she didn't mind having her emotions played with, because although he didn't really love her he showed her it as if he did, and that was good enough; this was _Orochimaru_, the man she'd loved with all her heart when she was younger. Anko groaned. That damn snake. It was always the same, even when he wasn't there he managed to screw her up.

She was trying to suppress the urges to go and find Orochimaru; trying even harder to suppress the actual lust she felt that was trying to attract her to him. She wanted to deny it. She wanted to deny that even though he didn't feel any real love for her, she felt love for him again. Growing up all those years without him, spiting him, hating him, was she really already loving him again after a simple kiss?

_But it felt like more than a kiss._ Anko groaned, before pushing off the bed and rolling onto her back again. Then she grit her teeth and got up, sliding off the bed and making her way to the door of her room.

"I've got to get out of here," she muttered to herself, opening the door and peering outside to see if Orochimaru was around. She double-checked with her infrared sensing and gathered that he was far away enough for her to make her escape. If she wanted to ignore her growing feelings for him then she had to leave his base quickly, otherwise she feared that she'd get too attached to him and…want to stay?

"No, I'll never want to stay here, with him," she assured herself, beginning to make her way down the halls. She had made mental maps in her head and thought she knew her way around, but it appeared that she didn't because she quickly got lost, like always. She got irritated because she thought Orochimaru would find her, but she couldn't sense him around. Then again, he was Orochimaru. He could be creeping right behind her and she wouldn't know.

The sense of power he had scared her but made her feel in awe of him at the same time. Just like when she was a child, she'd looked up to him so much, wanting to be like him, wanting to be as strong as he was. Anko turned another corner, coming down a hallway she was sure she'd been down before. She was just about to hit something in her irritation when she noticed a hallway she hadn't yet been down. She grinned and made her way over, looking down and feeling a wave of relief wash over her.

She could see steps at the end, steps that undoubtedly led out of Orochimaru's base, and she'd gotten here without Orochimaru catching her. She could leave all this, forget about Orochimaru as quickly as possible and try to live a life again. She regretted coming with Orochimaru here, she had to regret it, and knew now was her chance. She took a step down the hallway.

"You're not leaving me already, are you?" came the voice of a man she knew so well. Any hope Anko had of escaping was now lost as she froze, eyes widening slightly.

_Never have your back to the enemy._

It was something Orochimaru had drilled into her whilst she had been his student, and even to this day she kept that in mind at all times, never turning her back to an enemy unless absolutely necessary. She whirled around, facing Orochimaru. He stood two meters away from her. She didn't like the sadness etched onto his face, because she knew he was only pretending. Just like she predicted he then smirked, and began to walk towards Anko.

Anko's back hit the wall, shocking her slightly because she hadn't realized she'd been backing away from Orochimaru; he quickly took advantage of her. He blocked her from running towards the exit by placing a hand up against the wall, and placed his body so she couldn't run out the other way. Anko was trapped up close against Orochimaru, and it was painful. Not because she didn't like it, but because she did. The close proximity made her skin tingle, and she was finding it hard to not want to have a repeat of the time in the training hall. She growled, trying to shake off the feelings.

"What are you gonna do, rape me?" Anko asked angrily, trying to show the Sannin that she didn't want him to be cornering her like this. He only smiled devilishly.

"It's not rape if you like it, is it, my dear?" he smirked, watching Anko grow angrier. "It's not like I didn't see the obvious pleasure in your eyes. Before me, you reveal so much; you're powerless, and I'm not blind to that. I saw the lust, I felt your want; that's right, Anko, you don't _need_ me, you _want_ me; you chose through want to kiss me yesterday, and it's obvious that even now you want me again." He earned a hard shove in the stomach as Anko tried to throw him off. However, he wasn't budged.

"Shut up!" Anko shouted into his face. "I don't want this! I don't know what overcame me last night! You... I couldn't ever..." she trailed off, unable to finish her sentence as memories of the night before rushed through her mind. She felt her body tilt slightly in Orochimaru's direction before she caught herself and pulled back. Her 'wants' were becoming an annoying problem she needed to solve. Orochimaru, however, seemed to be on top of the world.

"You belong to me, Anko, you even admitted it. Don't be so naïve," he said, pushing her to see what she'd do next. He knew what the end result of this chat would be, and after that Anko would definitely belong to him. Anko was silent for a moment, inwardly fuming, before speaking.

"Get away from me," she said quietly. "I don't belong to you... I'm not some toy..." Orochimaru rolled his eyes sarcastically at Anko before chuckling and brushing her cheek lightly with his fingers. She recoiled and turned her head away.

"What was that? I didn't hear you?" Orochimaru said, taunting Anko on. Anko took the bait, raising her voice slightly.

"I said... get away from me," she repeated. Orochimaru kept playing.

"Excuse me?" he said, and finally got the reaction he wanted. Anko threw a punch at the Sannin's face.

"GET AWAY FROM ME!" she screamed, her punch blocked by Orochimaru's hand. He kept a firm grip on Anko's fist, holding it securely in place as Anko struggled to get free. She lashed out with a foot, aiming to kick Orochimaru's shin, but he merely circled his targeted leg around her foot and swept her off her feet, letting Anko's hand go as she crashed to the ground.

"My, my, I thought I'd taught you better than that," Orochimaru chided, mocking Anko's skills. He began to walk away from her and down the hall, as if leaving her like he'd done in Land of the Sea, but instead his body was shoved roughly up against one of the walls, a kunai held up against his throat. Anko had a snarl on her face as she pushed the metal blade into his throat, although not hard enough to draw blood. Orochimaru chuckled, although Anko couldn't find the joke.

"Are you really going to kill me, Anko? Is it not a matter of being too weak to do so, but simply something else? Maybe you can't kill me, because you want something else instead..." he suggested with a sly grin. Anko hesitated momentarily, and Orochimaru took advantage of it and pulled Anko around, pinning her up against the wall and placing a hand on her wrist, pulling the kunai away from his throat and placing her hand up against the wall above her head. He pinned her other hand up as well.

"Let... me... go!" Anko yelled, trying to free her hands. She was once again overpowered by Orochimaru, and all she could do was flail and scream and hope he'd just grow annoyed and leave her. However, he had other plans.

"Orochi—" Anko was cut off from speech when Orochimaru's lips pressed firmly against hers, capturing her in a deep kiss. She briefly registered her mind screaming at her not to give in, but her emotions, her 'needs' as Orochimaru had described them as, won out. The turmoil she'd been in this morning all tipped over in favour to the Snake Sannin as she tried not to get lost in his touch. It was so hard though.

She gasped as his lips claimed hers, the pale-skinned male using that and letting his snake-like tongue enter her mouth. Anko was overwhelmed, trying so hard to keep in control, but it quickly slipping away. This feeling was just too much. She cursed him in her mind before she gave in, and he had her.

Her tongue met Orochimaru's, savouring the divine taste she'd experienced for the first time last night, and she pushed back against him. Her lips crushed against his, Orochimaru releasing Anko's arms when he was sure she wouldn't fight back.

The kunai clattered to the ground, and Anko's arms were quickly around Orochimaru's neck, pulling him towards her as she tried to feel as much of the Snake Sannin as she could. Her fingers entwined themselves in his luscious ebony locks, her eyes flickering shut as she used her other senses to lead her in the experience.

However, there was just one barrier. _Clothes. _Anko wanted to feel her skin against his as quickly as possible and just pressing her body against his right now didn't cut it. She needed to get rid of that purple robe, pronto.

She couldn't believe she was making out with an S-Class criminal, someone who wanted to destroy Konoha, someone so **evil** and **twisted**. But she couldn't help herself. If it made her some terrible criminal, then so be it—she couldn't deny these feelings anymore, and so here she was, her fingers gripping Orochimaru as tightly as she could whilst her lips left his mouth and explored the skin leading down to his neck; maybe it was simply her childish needs that made her do this; she'd always craved his acknowledgement, always craved for him to want her, and now he was finally giving her the attention she wanted it was if she just couldn't let it go. She grinned sadistically as she let her teeth graze his skin, her tongue running over the pale skin soon after and taking in everything that was Orochimaru.

Her lips were back on his. Then her fingers left his neck and moved to the front of Orochimaru's robes. She gripped them tightly, and brought back her lips momentarily to speak, but Orochimaru hushed her with another ravaging kiss. He put his knee in between Anko's legs, spreading them apart and pulling Anko up so her legs wrapped around his waist. He knew what she wanted, and he was ready to comply.

She would definitely be unable to leave him after this, and he had even given a little thought to what the experience would be like before he came up here to catch Anko. One of his hands ran along the length of her thigh, rubbing it smoothly, a soft moan of pleasure leaving Anko's lips soon after.

He left the wall, his lips still locked onto Anko's as he carried her down the hallways. Unlike her, he knew his way around, and soon he had barged through a door into his room, ignoring the scrolls lining desks, cupboards and shelves, making his way directly to the bed. It was king-sized, perfect for what they were about to do. Orochimaru wouldn't lie; he found some pleasure in this as well. He usually denied any feelings of 'love' and 'lust', but Anko sparked enough feeling into him that made him want to feel Anko's body against his own. He wanted to taste her, feel her, _have her._

Orochimaru laid Anko onto the soft covers, breaking away from her lips momentarily as his body straddled hers. He was on top because he was the dominant one, and always would be. Anko might be able to manage to make him want her body, but he wouldn't let the titles of predator and prey be switched around. He also refused to let himself lower to moaning. He would enjoy himself, but he wouldn't allow Anko the satisfaction of hearing him moan; that was for her to do only.

He tore off Anko's coat and tossed it behind him, the piece of clothing landing in a heap on the floor. Now he had her shoulders exposed to him, meaning that her Curse Seal was open for him to touch, lick, _bite._ Oh, the mark could cause her so much pain, but at the same time it could afford her so much pleasure. It only had to be done in the right way, and Orochimaru could do that easily.

Orochimaru's long pink tongue trailed along from Anko's collarbone up to her cheek, causing her to shudder in pleasure. Her skin tingled, and she couldn't suppress the slight moan that left her lips. She reacted instinctively by rocking her hips up against Orochimaru, a sign of her want. She wanted him so much it hurt, something that terrified but thrilled her at the same time.

She opened her eyes as she hungrily leaned forward and rubbed her cheek against his, her head then tilting as her teeth nibbled Orochimaru's ear. His damn earrings were in the way, but she'd quickly get rid of them alongside his clothes. All in due time, though; she wanted to enjoy the Snake Sannin a little bit more first. Orochimaru was slightly shocked when Anko's teeth clenched around the top of his ear, but he did find it amusing that she felt like dishing out her own pain to him during this experience, and it did make him feel... pleasured? In a way, he'd liked the pain.

Anko was pushed back by Orochimaru, whose hands had easily found themselves on her breasts. The mesh top wasn't much of an obstacle for him, and he smirked upon feeling her chest. She was no Tsunade, but that was fine for him; he wasn't as big a pervert as Jiraiya, and Anko was _perfect_ for him; the age gap made no difference. He squeezed her breasts with the smirk still visible, and Anko reacted by trying to take off Orochimaru's purple robe; why should he get all the fun?

"Not yet, my pet," Orochimaru purred, his hands sliding away to take her wrists. He brought them away and laid them beside her head, leaving them to stay there. His right hand then caressed her cheek affectionately whilst she huffed.

"I'm not your pet," she mumbled, rubbing her cheek up against Orochimaru's hand; it was so nice. Above her, Orochimaru chuckled.

"It doesn't seem that way with you rubbing your face up against my hand," he said slyly, and Anko pouted.

"Oh, shut up, I'm not your—" she was stopped short when she felt Orochimaru's other hand moving downwards. He quickly and skilfully removed her skirt, sliding it down over her legs and disposing of that alongside her coat, and now was already stroking her groin, causing her to tremble with anticipation, but also feel a little uncomfortable.

It was just strange to her, having her old sensei feeling her like this. The thought really did hit her like a train. Her old sensei was touching her, feeling her, in private places that she would have beaten up anyone else for even looking at. He was getting intimate with her, and she loved it.

The uncomfortable feeling was washed away as he finally found his mark, his hand rubbing her pubic area, and Anko felt herself brink insanity. She was still wearing underwear though, and cursed that small obstacle that stopped her from fully reaching the pleasure Orochimaru could bring her. Why was he so good at this? Why could he silence her with just a touch? It was pretty simple. He was her God after all.

"_I... think you're already the strongest... person in the world..." Anko mumbled. "You're _my _God, Orochimaru-sensei," she admitted. Orochimaru had an amused smile on his face. He did like the continued adoration she had for him. He was her God, and it felt... good._

Anko moaned louder than before, the feeling overwhelming. Her fingers tensed and curled before un-curling again, itching to grab onto something. And what better thing was there to grab onto than Orochimaru? The astounding feeling bolted her into movement. Her hips rocked back up against Orochimaru, and her hands shot out and curled around Orochimaru's head. She pulled him against her and kissed him forcefully, passionately, falling even closer into insanity. She felt like she was losing her mind to this man; he was driving her crazy; he was her drug, and she was addicted.

She pulled back slightly to speak. She had to speak. She had to tell him.

"Orochimaru...just do it," she said, although the demanding tone in her voice was evident. Orochimaru didn't just take orders from people though, and anyway, he had something he wanted out of her first. He continued to rub her pubic area, not wanting to rid her of her panties just yet though, eliciting more moans from Anko.

"Oh, I shall, my dear, but you know that nothing is free when it comes to me," he said, and Anko moaned again.

"What...do you want?" she managed to growl out. Why was he being so stupidly difficult? She felt like she was going to explode. She _needed_ him so badly. Orochimaru teased her, still rubbing her whilst using his other hand to take off her mesh top. Orochimaru was still fully dressed, and it annoyed Anko, whilst she was now down to just her underwear. It must have been such a sight for the Snake Sannin.

The mesh top landed alongside her coat and skirt, her necklace taken off with her coat, and her shin-guards still in her room, Anko not having bothered putting them on; Anko hadn't been wearing a bra, for who knows what reasons. Orochimaru leaned over and let his tongue circle her left nipple, causing another moan to rise from the girl. He loved reducing her to such a fragile state. He pulled back a few seconds later.

"I want...you," he said, and Anko would have frowned if her expression wasn't so contorted with lust, want, and pleasure.

"...How?" she asked, shuddering when Orochimaru rubbed her again down below. _Stop playing with me, _she thought in her head, wishing they could just get on. It was obvious, deep in the Sannin's eyes, that he wanted her too in that way, no matter how small that want was.

"You say you weren't in your right mind yesterday when you agreed to being mine, so here is your surrender. If you want me, then I want you to beg me for it. I want you to yell my name, beg for me, surrender yourself; I want you to give up and **be mine. **I want you to scream it to me whilst I take you, Anko, and I want you to **mean it.** I want you to stay by my side, and even if you don't want to accept it, continuing with this **will **break all ties with the pathetic Leaf Village. This is your betrayal, Anko. This is your surrender," he hissed, watching Anko trying to take in his conditions.

Of course, he didn't play fair in letting her make decisions. He moved his hand back to her groin, slowly getting further away from her sensitive spot, and the slight desperation that flickered across her face was enough for him to already know her answer. Anko didn't respond directly. She whined at Orochimaru instead.

"Please, Orochimaru, don't leave, don't stop," she begged, and Orochimaru smirked triumphantly. She hadn't completely succumbed to lust yet, so still in her right mind, these were her decisions. There was no passing on the blame later on. She was giving into him, and was giving up her right, because in the next few minutes she would properly be his.

"Good girl," he hissed, pleased, and moved on. He lowered his head, Anko's hands slipping back to her sides, and placed his teeth around her right nipple, causing Anko to tense, but then when he bit her lightly, his tongue running over the flesh, she moaned happily. She had agreed to his terms, she had to hold them up, she had to have Orochimaru.

"Orochimaru!" she gasped, loudly, and his name was music to Orochimaru's ears. He grinned, mouth moving up to her collarbone as he kissed her slowly and skilfully across her skin, and let his hand move to Anko's underwear. He was tantalizing to her, still fully clothed, and now she would be naked. He slid the knickers down around her legs, and slipped them off from her feet. He added the final garment to Anko's pile on the floor, and leant back to admire the beautiful woman in front of him.

Anko growled, annoyed that Orochimaru's body had moved off hers for the moment. She wanted it back on her again, and she wanted to burn that purple robe now; it had to go or she would personally claw it off. Orochimaru, meanwhile, had a large smile on his face. In due respect, Anko was stunning. She had the perfect figure, and he had to resist from running a hand down her nicely curved hips. Her breasts weren't too large or too small, and she had beautiful eyes.

Anko realized that she hadn't locked eyes with Orochimaru so far, until now of course. Her caramel coloured eyes were instantly hypnotized by his golden orbs, and she fell. She'd been standing on a steep cliff, the darkness below her offered by the Snake Sannin, and now she'd lost her footing and stumbled into his shadows, his darkness, him.

"Orochimaru!" she screamed at him. "For god's sake! Strip!" she begged, her hands now fists that she pounded the bed in distress. Orochimaru chuckled darkly, seeing the suffering Anko was going through the longer he stayed clothed. He suggestively pulled back a fold of his robe, revealing a bit of his pale chest to Anko. She caught sight of it and he saw the lust haze her eyes. He chuckled again.

"What did you say you wanted?" he asked, pretending once again to not hear. Anko's response was fiercer than he expected. She literally pounced on him. Suddenly their positions were switched, Anko atop Orochimaru, a snarl on her face as her hands were on his robe. She ripped the clothing off him, getting rid of it as quickly as she could. Orochimaru blinked, unaccustomed to this fierce side of Anko. Did she really want him that much?

His shock was replaced by a smirk when Anko had finally gotten rid of his purple robe. He'd expected this moment to come, so he'd helped the girl by not wearing anything beneath the robe except for black pants. His bare white chest was now exposed to Anko, and she hungrily attacked it. Her fingers traced patterns along his sides, her lips kissing and nipping at patches of skin in an attempt to taste him. Orochimaru let her have her moment of dominance despite all he'd thought before. However, it would be short-lived, because as always he was the predator.

With only his black pants keeping them apart, Anko was quick. She wanted to tease him first though. Her fingers found the bulge in his pants, and Orochimaru's eyes widened slightly when she rubbed it, a sly grin on her face. She could tell already that it was erect.

"It seems I'm not the only excited one," she grinned, and then her eyes narrowed. She was quickly rolled over, Orochimaru back on top. He was smirking again.

"Oh no, I've been found out," he said sarcastically, and that was it. It was time for Anko's surrender. He could feel his area throbbing with lust for the woman before him, and so he complied. He stripped for her, sliding off his pants and readjusting himself above Anko, straddling her in a comfortable position for him. This was it. Both naked, both radiating the lust for one another, now all Orochimaru needed was for Anko to really turn him on. He needed her to scream his name. He needed her to beg him to push inside of her. He needed her to give her soul to him!

Anko had her eyes closed. She'd shut them upon seeing Orochimaru's erect penis, because she couldn't take it anymore. She knew he was going to play with her some more. Even now, she felt something brushing against her skin, and she knew what it was.

"Open your eyes, Anko," Orochimaru commanded. He rocked his hips tauntingly against hers, causing Anko to moan slightly. "I want to you to see what I'm going to do to you," he demanded. Anko's eyelids flickered open, and she breathed quicker as she looked up and, more importantly, down his figure. He was so beautiful, so perfect.

"Orochimaru," she moaned, wanting him inside of her right at that moment. His hips rocked against hers again, causing her to moan again. He felt so good! "Orochimaru!" she half moaned, half shouted at him. She was picking up her volume.

"What are you?" Orochimaru demanded of her, and she was thrown by the question. However, she knew what answer he wanted, and she knew what her reward would be. His hips knocked threateningly against hers again, and she cried out to him.

"Orochimaru!" she cried, needing him so badly. Her lips couldn't form the right words. She couldn't say them, like it was an inability for her right now, but she needed to. Orochimaru's fangs brushed along her neck as he bent down, sending a spark of feeling through her that made her body buck. Her hips collided with his, but still it wasn't enough.

"What are you?" he shouted again, and this time Anko screamed back. She couldn't take it!

"I am yours!" she screamed. "I belong to you, goddamn it! Now do it!" she cried, and Orochimaru obliged, triumphant, victorious over the purple-haired kunoichi. In a quick movement he pushed deep into her core, and Anko cried out. At first she only felt pain, but then a wondrous pleasure spread throughout her body, making her tingle with ecstasy. She gasped, and her lips were captured by Orochimaru. She reacted with eager lust, kissing back as she felt him within her. It felt so right, and they fit together perfectly, as if made for one another.

Anko wrapped her slender legs around Orochimaru, a deeper feeling welling up in her chest. She'd only felt lust for Orochimaru so far, something that had been hard enough to resist. But now, here, she felt like she might be falling in love again.

Her actions were desirous, her mouth trailing kisses across Orochimaru's mouth, chest and anywhere else she could get to. She nibbled his pale skin, and sucked on his neck, leaving behind her own mark. He sighed in pleasure upon that feeling, and let the girl run her hands across him, only jerking when he pulled out of her.

She flinched visibly, but he thrust back into her, causing a moan of pleasure to arise from her. He could feel her fingers clawing at his back, fumbling around for something to hold onto. However, he had to do the work, his arms either side of Anko's head as he began to thrust slightly faster into her.

Like a lustrous ebony curtain, Orochimaru's hair fell around her, and Anko quickly entwined her fingers in the shining locks. With each successive thrust she got more alive, her movements bolder. She had no problem now with capturing Orochimaru's mouth in an iron grip with her own, kissing him passionately, tasting the insides of his mouth with her tongue, and returning outside to run her hands across the strong muscles on his chest and back.

She drew patterns with her fingers, and when the thrusts grew too much at one point her fingers tightened, her nails digging in and drawing blood. Orochimaru had hissed at this point, back arching slightly, which made Anko all the more aroused. She'd in turn wiped the blood off his back with her fingers and licked it up, the sweet and sour taste she loved so much returning to her taste buds. The feelings were so much though, and she was quickly sweating and breathing quicker.

"O- Orochimaru!" she cried out to him. "Don't...! Don't...!" she shouted, "stop!" Orochimaru had halted momentarily; shocked by her demands to stop, but when he heard the last word he managed to smirk. 'Don't stop.' Anko was looking up at Orochimaru, and his sweaty, seductive form made her want to explode with ecstasy. He was everything she'd ever needed in her life, and more.

"Keep going!" she cried out, breathing harder; however, Orochimaru wanted his go to get a piece of Anko. He flipped them over, and suddenly the kunoichi was putting in the effort, her arms shaking slightly as she started to thrust up and down upon the man she lusted so badly for. She was going on pure adrenaline; sweat beading her face as Orochimaru felt her body. He groped her breasts roughly, causing her to moan in delight. Then he ran his hands up along her hips, outlining each curve with a deft stroke.

"More!" she spluttered out, a feral grin on her face. However, she didn't expect him to act as he did. As she thrust down onto him she was suddenly trapped there, his strong arms keeping her there. Orochimaru trailed kisses up to her left shoulder, and although the pleasures of sex had kept the painful tingle of Anko's Curse Mark at bay, as Orochimaru's curved fangs sank into the exact place they had in the Land of the Sea those years ago, Anko couldn't help but scream. Her scream rang through the room and down the empty hallways, the scream of someone who was not only experiencing furious pain but intense pleasure, someone who wanted...

"M-more!" Anko managed to gasp, eyes wide. Her breathing was getting quicker with each minute, and she knew she was beginning to reach her limit. Orochimaru removed his fangs from her shoulder and nuzzled her neck, and she moaned loudly at the intense delight she felt every time Orochimaru touched her.

She broke free of his grip, thrusting harder and faster against Orochimaru, her breaths coming in short ragged gasps now as she drew closer and closer to her limit. Orochimaru looked like he was nearing his peak too. He may have been one of the most powerful shinobi in the world, but when it came to sex he was just like any other human being. That thought made Anko licked her lips in satisfaction.

Then she hit it; the peak feeling. She suddenly shuddered and cried out as an intense pleasure spread through her body, her grip on the Sannin tightening twice-fold. She drew blood from him but wasn't aware of it, only feeling so amazing, so high. It was as if she was jumping off the highest mountain, the exhilarating feeling sweeping her body as she fell. But into what was the question.

The Sannin stood at the bottom for her, to catch her from her fall, and as the invigorating feeling faded away she collapsed into his arms. It was a shame that she'd been unable to last as long as him, but still... it had been a very interesting experience for him.

Anko was exhausted, her body satiated, and she wearily wiped a sheen of sweat from her forehead as Orochimaru pulled her into his embrace, rolling over into a good position for them both so her back was curving into his body. He stroked her forehead affectionately, playing with her hair for a while as he whispered into her ear:

"You are mine..." he asserted, a smile playing on his lips. Anko closed her eyes, too tired to do any more. However, just before she drifted off into sleep she managed to whisper a few words back.

"I know..." she said, and then she fell asleep, the image of the man holding her flittering into her dreams. Orochimaru's smile broadened. That had been his ultimate goal of the day, and it seemed he'd achieved it without any hitches. His only concern was for the stirring feeling in his gut. Maybe it was some kind of stronger affection for his former student? He knew he shouldn't let it develop, but he had always held a soft spot for the purple-haired kunoichi, and if she could give him such invigorating feelings as that, it was always worth keeping her around. He sighed slightly. Oh, Anko.

"My dear, I don't want to ever let you go," he said, admitting it to himself alone. Lying there naked, alongside Anko, it felt right in a way. The feeling interested him. Maybe he'd broach on it tomorrow. At the moment, however, he felt tired and needed rest. He didn't like this weakness that sex brought upon him, but it had been worth it, he thought. He chuckled to himself and then relaxed next to Anko, closing his eyes and allowing himself to fall slowly asleep beside his dear old student. The darkness of the room settled upon them both, like a blanket, and soon there was silence.

* * *

**Author's very-important-must-read-and-really-awesome note. :D**  
_So there you go. D: A lemon. -shudders- I think I did crap. :3 What do you think? xD Review, tell me, and all that shizz; this is one of those times when I'm really begging you to review (even if you don't normally review this story), because I really need to know your opinions on this. I had so little faith in myself whilst writing this, and I literally put myself down constantly; it's a miracle I managed to post this, to be honest. So yeah, please review with your thoughts. Thankies. C: Also, I know a lot o' you like AnkoXOrochimaru, and I'm guessing some of you don't. Don't go flamin' just cause you hatin'. C: Constructive Critism is what's accepted around these parts, not random n00b comments about how Orochimaru is anime's Michael Jackson (and I will burn your head off if you say he is D:). Just thought I'd get that out in the open. :L Thank you to everyone that's reading this story, because even if not everyone who reads this reviews, I check the stats for hits and feel happy to see how many people are viewing each chapter. ^^ So yeah, thanks guys. :D_

And a thank you to the guys who reviewed: **NinjaSheik**, **Ryunn Kazan**, **ankofan**, **fishyfella**, and **Yin-Yan-Yum-Yum**. I have 50 reviews for Dark Possession now. Woot~! 8D I love you all. :) Also a special thanks to **NinjaSheik **who's being so supportive and great to me. ^^ Thank you for everything you've done so far for me and for giving me the confidence to write/post this lemon. x] I appreciate it. I appreciate all the fans for this story. :) So once more, thank you everyone. C:_  
_


	11. Experiments

"_You gave in," echoed a voice around Anko. She jerked, her eyes shooting around to find the source of the noise. But she was alone; alone in the darkness._

It surrounded her, but this time the suffocating weight of the darkness didn't affect Anko. It was a part of her now, because Anko had embraced it, leading to a more violent personality to take over for a while. Lately she'd been trying to suppress it, but it was always there; ready to drag her back when she let her guard down.

Anko breathed steadily, closing her eyes momentarily. When she re-opened them her darker copy was there again, however, instead of taking on the form of her younger self, it was as old as she was now. Anko merely stared at it.

"I know," Anko finally whispered back. It smirked back at her and then chuckled.

"Good. Konoha made us weak, but Orochimaru can make us strong again. This is exactly what we need, and for this to work, you need to cut your ties completely with Konoha. They'll only drag us down," it said, a louder chuckle vibrating from its lips.

"How?" Anko asked, keeping completely calm.

"That will come in due time, but you need to forget about them from now on. All that matters is Orochimaru, although I could say that from last night you've already centred your focus on him," the copy said, now laughing. Anko's eyes narrowed slightly as she looked at it, the horrifying memories of her and Orochimaru's time together the night before coming back to her and making her feel sick in the stomach. Had she really done that? They'd barely spent a few days together. She was so mentally weak to him...

Anko was silent. Eventually, the copy started to talk again.

"I do not like the way you are trying to suppress me, though. I thought we'd already overcome that barrier," it said, now glowering at Anko.

"I don't need the darkness to be strong. I decided that after I fought with Orochimaru. However, I wouldn't have known that if I hadn't embraced it in the first place, but all in all, I'm fine without," she stated casually, watching her copy get angry.

"Wrong. We belong to Orochimaru now, for him to do as he wishes with us. You willingly stated that last night; so don't go about denying it. But until you completely give in to him, release the Curse Mark's power and openly show the hatred and lust for power we have, he will lose interest. That can't happen," it said, and Anko knew her dark copy was right.

She hated to think that, but for all of the heartbreak she'd experienced over that man, she knew he would more than happily throw her aside if she proved useless to him. He was that kind of person, someone who didn't waste his time on the weak. However, what if she proved that she wasn't weak without the Curse Mark? What if she made herself interesting to him without it? She knew that would be incredibly hard.

But then again, why was she thinking of how best to impress him right now anyway? Shouldn't she be thinking of how to escape, or how to kill him?

_Because I am his, _came the immediate response to her self-doubt. _Because I belong to him. _Anko's expression grew solemn as she accepted the fact. It was hard, but she knew she had to. She'd said it, to him no less, and she knew that in the end, if she denied him, there would come a situation where she would end up admitting it again. There was no escaping the snake. She was trapped by him. Orochimaru.

"So you will do your best to please him, right?" the copy said, as more of a fact than a question. However it still waited for Anko's response. Anko was silent for a few seconds, her head lowering for her eyes to stare at the invisible ground, and then she responded.

"Yes," she whispered quietly. There was no escape. There never was. She had no hope anywhere, and no one to place her trust in. She'd destroyed any chances of that happening. So why not place everything she had into the dangerous hands of the only person she had left?

"It doesn't matter what you want anymore. You must do everything he wants you to, with no complaints," the copy said.

"Yes," Anko whispered again. Then she shut her eyes again. The copy smirked.

"Good," it said, and then it was gone. This time, when Anko opened her eyes, there wasn't darkness, but colour.

* * *

When Anko woke up, at first she felt a creeping warmth up her back, but then it disappeared and a wave of cold washed over her. She shivered and cracked open her eyes, trying to make sense of her situation. She couldn't see, everything a blur, but second by second she managed to wake up. Her usual half an hour wake-up had been shattered after she'd accepted she was now taking up residence in Orochimaru's base. You needed to always be sharp and on guard whilst around him, so she needed to not walk blindly around for half an hour every morning.

Anko tensed, making sense of the situation she was in. She'd had sex with Orochimaru. That was the most obvious fact to her, one she was now remembering vividly in her mind and one that was creeping her out slightly. She hated to think she'd done such a thing, but how could she when she remembered it being the best sex she'd ever have in her life? Damn.

Right, moving on. She was now lying on a bed, but whose? She knew in her gut it was Orochimaru's, but where was the man himself? She edged backwards; hoping deep down she would end up snuggling into Orochimaru's arms, but no such luck. He'd left her. Typical. She slowly managed to get into a sitting position, eyes blurring slightly before adjusting and focusing on her surroundings. She saw the covers underneath her, hence why she'd been feeling so cold a minute ago; she was lying on top of them. Then she jumped a little.

She was stark naked. She blushed furiously and quickly scrambled to get beneath the covers, the sight of her own exposed body making her feel embarrassed about everything that had happened with Orochimaru. She'd given herself to him, meaning he'd been allowed to indulge himself in her full body without restraint, and then, seeing as she'd woken up atop the covers, when he'd finally awoken this morning he'd have found himself up against her naked body on the covers. Had he stared at her? She couldn't have done anything to stop him if he'd done anything to her, looked at her, touched her maybe? No, he wouldn't have done that. She shuddered at the thought.

But having her body exposed like that was embarrassing and she was glad to be under the covers now. She had the comfortable cotton pulled right up to her chin, clutching it tightly to make sure no one could look at her. Her eyes raked the room, but there was no sign of Orochimaru standing up or sitting at his desk, however, all she did notice was a piece of clothing at the end of the bed. She narrowed her eyes, curiosity overwhelming her, and began to make her way towards it.

She shuffled down the length of the bed, keeping the covers over her at all times, and managed to get near enough to swipe up the material and the note on top of it. Great; another one of the snake's notes.

_Based on your situation, I figured you'd need this. I'm sure you'll look spectacular._

Anko huffed, looking at the clothing. It was a chemise, a loose-fitting, sleeveless, shirt-like undergarment. She frowned, not liking Orochimaru's taste at all. It was revealing, and was intended to be provocative. Damn him, but she wasn't going anywhere soon if she didn't put this on, so she quickly got to work slipping it under the covers alongside her to get changed hurriedly.

It was a purple chemise, and on the back was the pattern of a snake. _Just another way for Orochimaru to try and make me his, _she thought with a sigh, but she didn't care all too much. She liked the pattern, if truth be told. Once she was dressed in the chemise, Anko got out from under the covers. She got off of the bed, her bare feet lightly touching down on the cold hard ground, and then made her way towards the door of Orochimaru's room.

She really did look beautiful in the chemise, as Orochimaru had predicted, with the clothing ending half way up her thigh, revealing her long and slender legs. Her arms were also exposed, thin straps running over her shoulders, and the garment had a low-cut that was enough for her cleavage to be showing slightly. On the back, the picture of the snake was clearly visible; its form almost rippling with every swift movement Anko took that ruffled the clothing. She was definitely beautiful.

The doorknob was turned and the door was carefully opened, Anko's face peeking through to look into the hallways beyond. Yesterday she'd been focused on escaping, but now... God, she couldn't do it, even if she wanted to. She had one slight problem, and that was what she was supposed to do now. She was in a dank and dark base underground, and it wasn't as if there was anyone for her to talk to. Save for Orochimaru, but he was probably off somewhere dissecting a worm, so she didn't want to bother herself with finding him.

Anko moved into the hallway, a finger finding itself on her chin as she thought. She began to wander down the endless halls, not bothering with thinking about whether she was going to get lost or not, merely brainstorming ideas for how she was going to spend the rest of her life; surely it wasn't going to be as fun as it would have been with Konoha—Wait, no. Konoha wouldn't have been fun at all. She would have spent the rest of her life being out casted and hated upon, and she'd only have ended up feeling regret and sadness. Being with Orochimaru was better, even if she was miserable with him.

Maybe she should go find him, after all? She had nothing to do, and it seemed that from now on he would be her source of entertainment. Being Orochimaru, she didn't doubt that they wouldn't stay in this base forever and would eventually move on to work on his plans, so maybe she could help speed that up and go and help him? The thought made goose-bumps rise on her arms, and she began to doubt her sanity. Now she was thinking about helping him in his cold-hearted experiments? That was beyond sick!

"_So you will do your best to please him, right?"_

"_It doesn't matter what you want anymore. You must do everything he wants you to, with no complaints,"_

...

"_Yes,"_

Her life was his. She was his. She belonged to him. But no matter how many times she thought that, she couldn't completely accept it. Anko felt despair welling in her heart, conflict between her doubts and beliefs, all of it revolving around one single question: had she picked the right thing to do?

Everything flooded away when she felt two warm arms circle around her mid-section from behind, pulling her slim figure into the body of a muscular, comfy person. She felt a set of soft lips press into her neck, trailing kisses up to her cheek. Then they slanted into a sly grin, the two elongated canines there gleaming in the torchlight.

"I knew you'd look marvellous in that chemise," he commented, and Anko released the breath she'd been holding since she'd first felt his touch.

"Orochimaru," she sighed, feeling her body melt into his for comfort. Where had all the doubt gone? It had been frightened away by the dominating presence of the Snake Sannin, and good riddance to it. It only created barriers and stress, and with Anko's new purpose it was only an obstacle to her. She felt a smile tug at the corners of her lips as Orochimaru rocked her gently from left to right. Where had this tender side of Orochimaru come from?

She felt one of Orochimaru's hands lower slowly down to her thigh to rub it gently, but she blocked him by placing a hand on his wrist, shaking her head slightly.

"Not now, please," she said, and he brought his hand back, as well as his body. A dissatisfied, upturned smile appeared on Orochimaru's face as he stepped away from Anko. Her heart lurched as she felt him move away from her, loneliness filling the space he'd occupied seconds ago. Anko turned around to face him, seeing his expression, and knew she'd annoyed him.

_Idiot, _came the voice in her head, and she felt even worse. However, she felt drawn to Orochimaru as her caramel eyes fell on him, and the longer she resisted the urge to fall into his arms the larger the urge became. The look in Orochimaru's eyes kept her at bay though. They were ones filled with disappointment, and disapproval of her actions. She had rejected him, and for that she'd suffer the consequences by now not being able to have him whilst she wanted to.

"I have no need for you today, Anko. If you get so bored, though, then you're welcome to practice any Jutsu in my training hall... if you can find your way there, of course," Orochimaru said, and then turned away from her with a final smirk. Anko watched him begin to walk away, all the while mentally beating herself up. She was so stupid!

But here was her dilemma. Her dream... No, it was more than a dream; it was too realistic not to be. It placed her in a position of having the internal argument on whether to try and make it all up to him or just to huff and give some retort that she'd end up regretting later. She bit her bottom lip, wincing when she realised just how sharp her teeth were getting; running a finger over them, she realised it wasn't just any teeth, but her canine ones. The Jutsu's effects really were coming through now. She wondered what else had changed?

Anko sighed, her mind floating in the direction of a single way to escape her irritation at having made Orochimaru look at her with such disappointment. Dream or no dream, she couldn't have held back the utter horror she'd felt with the disappointment he'd given her; it reminding her of her time back with him when she'd always tried so hard to please him. Any disappointment back then had made her feel horrible, and now it was just coming back to haunt her.

She decided what to do. Anko ran after him, putting a hand on his shoulder and pulling him to look at her again. She had a sly grin on her face, a glint in her eye that told of how she was ready to do what she was about to say. Orochimaru raised an eyebrow, willing her to talk, and so she did.

"I'll make it up with this," she said, taking in a deep breath. "I'll help you with your experiments," Anko stated, watching Orochimaru's other eyebrow now raised in surprise.

He hadn't expected this, no, not at all. It was quite a turn of events to see the purple-haired kunoichi willingly offer to help him with his bloody experiments. The things he did could be scarring to any weak-willed person, no, even quite a strong-willed person would be severely disturbed by his experiments. He then chuckled, realising what he'd been thinking. He had misjudged Anko, but even he knew she wasn't weak-willed or anything of the sort. She'd be able to handle it.

"Will you, now?" he asked, grinning sadistically. It would be quite useful to have her helping him; maybe he'd be finished with his Jutsu quicker if she lended a hand. Yes, that was good, so he'd accept her offer. Anko nodded her head, a mixture of feelings growing inside of her. One was fear, yes, definitely fear.

She was afraid of what his experiments would entail, seeing as she hadn't dealt with the first one she'd seen of his very well at all, and she also felt excitement. Maybe it was the rush of doing something so... out of the ordinary. Who was she to do experiments? It was sick, twisted, wrong, yet she was doing it, anyway. It was a mad rush, and she would most likely regret it later.

"Yes, I will. Now, are you going to accept my help or not?" she said, hurrying for an answer. Any chance to redeem herself, she would take it. Orochimaru chuckled at her impatience. It was quite unlike her to be so eager for such a thing, but he didn't mind it right now, actually liking this change in her.

A more obedient and blood-thirsty Anko would be more of a help to him than one who couldn't stand the sight of a dead body lying on his operating table, and so he nodded and turned his back on her once more. He raised a hand and gestured for her to follow him whilst heading towards the room he'd been so eager to keep her from seeing before.

Anko followed him silently, not making a sound, only feeling the impending sense of doom that was to come. She questioned her motives and why she was doing this, but she blocked them out in the end, keeping her eyes focused on the back of Orochimaru's head and thinking of that instead. God, his hair was beautiful. She smiled absent-mindedly without realising it, just following the man she was having conflicted feelings for. Why was life so complex?

They stopped outside a door, Orochimaru halting first and Anko following suit. She looked questioningly at Orochimaru as he turned to face her, and then knew they were here when he smirked. "You sure you're ready?" he asked her. The thoughts of her dream ran through her head, the demands of her copy.

"Yes," she replied, closing her eyes for a second before exhaling. Yes, she was ready, and she was also extremely curious as to find out what lay behind these doors. What messed up things was Orochimaru doing? She could try to imagine, but nothing in her mind compared to what she actually saw when Orochimaru opened the door and led her inside.

* * *

Anko was tough. She had always been tough, and she knew she always would be. There wasn't any room for the weak in the ninja world; they were swiftly killed. However, nothing prepared her for Orochimaru's experimentation room. She entered with faltering confidence, and her eyes immediately widened. Orochimaru calmly stepped in, shutting the door behind Anko after she'd stumbled in, and then smiled devilishly at his work, all contained in this room. Anko had already broken.

Her eyes wavered, reflecting the red blood that splattered the walls of the room and the desks that were placed in it. She saw bodies, a lot of bodies. Fat ones, thin ones, tall ones, short ones. But none stood out to her, all just deformed bodies with cuts, and gashes in them, coated in blood with their organs spilling out from the gaping wounds to their chests, throats, legs, and everywhere else, each body holding different injuries.

Anko knew all the bodies lying around were dead, yet to be disposed of. But her eyes lay upon something else, more bodies chained up against the walls. She gulped, unable to comprehend what she was seeing. Starved bodies, well-fed bodies, healthy and unhealthy bodies; these humans were alive. There were about seven of them, all huddled up near one another. Their time of dying was soon, and Anko knew they were what Orochimaru would be experimenting on. What she and Orochimaru would be experimenting on.

"No... no… no… no..." she mumbled. She couldn't do it. She backed up against the wall the door was on, moving across into the furthest corner. She slid to the ground once there, not wanting to see anymore, but she did. There were several human organs lying on the ground, ones she didn't want to identify, but all of them now unusable. There were jars full of liquid with other human body parts floating around inside, like an eye, or a finger, and some just contained liquid. Anko's eyes flickered everywhere, taking everything in, and she couldn't handle it.

Anko screamed, causing an uproar of moans and pleads for help from the prisoners in the room. Orochimaru wasn't all too pleased; having thought Anko was stronger than this. At least she hadn't passed out, which was something to be thankful for. Anko clutched at her head with her hands, pulling at her hair in despair at what she'd seen. It was all too bloody, too gruesome, too WRONG. She couldn't do it, she just couldn't. Her fingernails scratched her scalp, drawing blood, but she ignored the pain it caused. She moaned, her head burying itself in her knees, which had bent up to meet her. She got lost in the darkness there, eyes shutting, not wanting to see anymore.

"No..." she repeated, mumbling to herself. Orochimaru knew he had to deal with her soon, or else kick her out and send her to her room. She was no use to him just quivering on the floor. He could see her shaking form, unsteady and unstable. She hadn't been ready after all, but he could make her ready. He walked slowly over to her, a sneer making its way onto his face. He wanted to try and provoke her out of her fearful state first of all.

"Aw, look at you, shaking like a new-born pup. It's shameful for you to be acting this way, my dear," he said, but Anko didn't respond. She kept shaking, tears welling up in her eyes, although they were hidden from Orochimaru. Finally, she mumbled more words.

"I can't do it... I can't..." she said, sobs now wracking her body. She wasn't capable of such a thing. She couldn't be. Orochimaru tried a new approach. He crouched down beside the broken girl, placing a hand on her arm. He immediately got a reaction, Anko flinching and looking up. Her head now away from her knees, Orochimaru could see where tears brimmed her eyes, a few tears already having run down her cheek. Her eyes were uncertain, but definitely looked like they enjoyed his touch. He moved his thumb and rubbed her skin soothingly, saying words slowly to her.

"Anko, it's all right... I can understand if you don't want to do this. I'll just have to find another who can help with my experiments," he said, and this caused another reaction from Anko. She jumped slightly, not wanting to be replaced. She gaped at him, more tears appearing.

"It's just... so horrible... The bodies... The... The..." she muttered, not able to finish her sentence. Such a strong kunoichi, reduced to a tear-wrecked girl. She shook harder as her eyes now roamed the room again, seeing the blood and gore again. Orochimaru moved in front of her so she could no longer see the dead and alive bodies. She looked up at his face, so stern, but gentle too? Since when was Orochimaru gentle? His eyes, they were gentle, relaying that it was all going to be okay. She was moved into a trance as she looked into his eyes, so golden, so mesmerizing... He spoke once more.

"Anko. Listen to me. I know you can do this. I taught you myself, so I know how strong you are... Anko..." he said, his last repeat of Anko's name a lot softer than the rest of his words, so sternly spoken. Of course, the gentleness was merely Orochimaru's way of calming her down. He didn't really feel such emotions at this time; he was eager to return to his work. Anko's shaking gradually began to lessen, her eyes still lost in Orochimaru's. Her breathing began to slow down, increasingly fast merely seconds before, and she started to calm.

Orochimaru smiled, his hand running up her arm and moving around her neck. He moved his other hand and moved her knees away from her chest, that hand then clasping hers. He helped her to her feet, Anko quivering every few seconds as she tried not to look at the room's content. Orochimaru unhooked a white lab coat and slid it around Anko, covering her exposed arms and protecting her chemise from getting all bloody. It also provided a little warmth. Orochimaru had given his to Anko now, so he was coat-less, although that didn't bother him. He didn't mind getting a little blood on him.

Anko took small steps, Orochimaru leading her over to the operating table where a rather muscled man was lying. He had been knocked unconscious so he didn't struggle, although by the end of the procedure Orochimaru was sure the man would be dead, especially seeing as it was Anko's first time doing this, and she'd have to get used to experimenting in every way possible, this way obviously going to include killing people more than often. Anko's eyes rested on the man and she lost her small, building confidence, trying to turn tail and run, but as soon as she tried Orochimaru's grip turned into a firm one and kept her in place. Anko was forced to walk right up to the table, and soon she was standing above the man.

The other prisoners were all shouting at her and Orochimaru, increasing Anko's tension and stress. Orochimaru picked up on that and made a single hand seal, the prisoners quickly falling into a deep sleep. Silence was all that surrounded them now. Anko didn't know what to do with the man now though, her eyes wavering with uncertainty.

She didn't know what to do, and even if she did, there was probably no way she could do it. Of course, that would be if she was on her own. With someone like Orochimaru beside her, there was no way she was escaping without doing something. His left arm curled around her waist, comforting her, whilst his other picked up a scalpel from the trolley of his experimenting instruments, placing the tool into Anko's right hand. She tried to grip it tightly, but it began to slip out, her fright rendering her unable to apply pressure with her hands.

Orochimaru's hand was quickly on hers; steadying her new round of shaking and helping her fragile fingers curl around the scalpel. She looked sideways at him, but saw that his eyes were focused on the man before them both, steady with the determination of getting his experimentation underway.

She felt bad about not being any more help, but her body was acting entirely of its own accord; so whether she wanted to do this or not her body just would not obey. That was why Orochimaru guiding her at this point was what reassured her the most. She also liked the thought of him guiding her, because that way she wasn't entirely responsible of her gruesome actions, as he would be the one moving her hand, not her.

Anko's eyes soon returned to the man as her hand was brought near to his chest. He wasn't wearing a top, only pants. Anko stopped breathing, holding her breath as the cold steel of the scalpel pressed against the man's flesh. Then it sliced through. Anko watched in horror as she cut open his chest, the man's face contorting in severe pain as his skin split.

Her scalpel was quickly bloodied as Orochimaru applied pressure, her tool cutting in deeper and opening the wound further. The man was quick to die once they'd cut open the whole front of his torso, and after a small while of cutting they'd exposed the bone beneath, as well as the organs below the rib cage.

Anko wanted to be sick, but Orochimaru pressed himself closer to her, and she was steadied. She didn't like this at all. It sickened her, and she didn't understand how Orochimaru did it on a regular basis. She just wanted to get out of the room, but with Orochimaru so close, keeping a hold of her, it was impossible.

"You're doing well so far, my dear," Orochimaru said, a sly smile presenting itself on his face. His little student—because that was what she was again now that she was back with him—was learning more than just Jutsu now. She would become much stronger under his teaching, a subordinate he would be proud of, and she would learn how to do everything he could in regards to experiments.

She would be able to do it all on her own soon enough, and he would make sure that she enjoyed it. That change would be dramatic, but it was something he very much looked forward to. Anko didn't say anything back to his words, instead squirming uncomfortably at the sight of the man's heart and lungs. She didn't like it, and it still made her want to at least retch.

Anko felt too uncomfortable to say anything for the most part of the experiment, just staying silent whilst Orochimaru guided her movements. Whenever he felt like she was drifting off, relying on him too much, he would bump her to knock her back to reality. Orochimaru worked slowly with Anko, because although he wanted to do it all quickly, he thought that the longer Anko spent doing this the more she would get used to it. His prediction was partly accurate, because by the third body Anko was still a little shaky, but she'd developed a way to un-attach herself from the world so she didn't have look and think about the bodies she was experimenting on.

"I want you to try this one on your own," Orochimaru told Anko, a thin woman now lying in front of them. He let go of her before she could struggle or defy his words. Anko immediately panicked.

"No, I can't!" she exclaimed, despair crossing her face. As soon as Orochimaru's comforting touch left her she began to shake, but the new, clean scalpel in her hand didn't fall from her grasp. She was close to letting go though. Orochimaru took the initiative and ran his fingers through her hair slowly, calming her panic.

"You can do this," he whispered into her ear, soothing her. Anko's shaking began to cease as Orochimaru continued to stroke her hair, but the sense of panic stayed with her. She mentally calmed herself with Orochimaru's words helping too, and was able to steady herself. She could do this. She had to. But the prospect frightened her beyond belief.

Right now, she was in a position to earn some real brownie points with Orochimaru. She managed to let out a strangled sort of laugh through her frightened murmurs at the thought; maybe she wasn't so lost to the darkness after all. Her sense of humour was still intact, and that made her feel a small glow of happiness. She stepped closer to the table, slowly, and Orochimaru smiled, pleased. Anko then moved her hand in, the metal tool gleaming in the light of the room.

It cut into the woman's flesh, and Anko recalled the few words Orochimaru had actually said to her in the hours. He'd dropped a few notes to her about where best to cut, what to do, and the like; after cutting open the man the first time around they'd gone on to experimenting with the man's organs and his body; it wasn't all about cutting open someone's chest. She had immediately made it a priority to remember everything, and now that paid off as she made precise incisions. She made a few mistakes, but that was expected, right?

Orochimaru watched her silently, observing with a small sense of pride. She'd developed faster than he'd expected, but he knew she wasn't enjoying herself. She was only doing it so he wouldn't be disappointed. He knew she'd throw up about it later when he was gone. However, despite how she was doing the procedure, it was obvious that she was frightened beyond belief, and every now and again she'd shake a little. He didn't think of ways to make her feel any better, merely watching now that she was actually doing it all by herself.

"You ruined my date with Iruka, you know..." she said, words unexpectedly coming from her mouth; Orochimaru put it down to a way to take her mind off what she was doing. Orochimaru wondered why she was bringing this up, a little slither of agitation also rising at the name of that damned shinobi. He didn't like Iruka in the slightest; whether it was jealousy or just Anko thinking about Iruka too much, which kept her attached to Konoha, Orochimaru didn't like him. Iruka would die in the end. For now, Orochimaru played along with Anko's conversation.

"I have to say, I never thought I'd see the day when you wore a dress, much less a red one," he said, chuckling to himself. Anko's hand faltered, creating a medium sized cut down the woman's side which she hadn't meant to make; the woman was dead now, but she wasn't thinking about that.

Anko flushed a deep red, blushing furiously at the remark. Oh no, he'd seen her in the dress. She laughed shakily, trying to throw off his words about her dress. She didn't wear dresses. It was a well known fact, but that one day she had for Iruka... and man, she hadn't wanted Orochimaru of all people to know that.

"Ha... Shut up. You appeared and ruined everything, but I thought I was just seeing things. Obviously, if you know what dress I was wearing you really were there. Why did you do it?" she asked as calmly as possible. Orochimaru shook his head, watching Anko finish cutting open the woman. They were both speckled with blood in various places from what they'd done so far. He had some on his hands and arms, and Anko had some on her cheek and hands, as well as a bit on her lab coat.

"Of course, what else would I do? Watch you make love to some insignificant little Konoha brat who holds no noticeable power? He wasn't worth your time, Anko," he replied.

"So you were jealous?"

"Don't be foolish. Jealousy only leads to recklessness, and I don't tolerate that."

"But you were. Why else would you do that, if you knew that in the end I would come to you, anyway? I could have kissed him, but it wouldn't have made a difference if I left Konoha in the end." Anko had put down the scalpel and collected a syringe filled with a black liquid. She observed it silently for a moment before she reached over and stuck it into the woman's heart, injecting the liquid into the non-beating organ.

She was a little hesitant with each thing she did, and she was shaking at the moment as she handled the heart, but she was beginning to think less and less about it. She had blocked out all thought of what she was doing, preferring not to think about the gruesome experiments, and that way in her mind it seemed as if she was just playing; as if she were a kid, prodding a doll with a stick; of course, she didn't have dolls when she was a kid; she was too much of a tomboy.

When the heart didn't react Anko edged away and put down the syringe, picking up a pen and then jotting a few notes on a piece of paper, her handwriting a little messier than usual.

"I had to make sure you weren't too attached to Konoha," Orochimaru replied smoothly. Anko twitched slightly, putting down the pen, and then turned on Orochimaru. Her rage built.

"So you were behind Kakashi's coma, then? Oh, and speaking of Kakashi, why the hell did you send me a snake for my birthday?" she demanded. She was remembering everything now, all the things he had done. It all fell into place, making her feel agitated.

Before she could get mad though, Orochimaru was right up in front of her, his lips of her forehead. He kissed it lightly before tilting his head down and pressing his own forehead against hers. His eyes locked with hers and he smiled.

"I thought you'd like my gift. And anyway, Kakashi isn't anything special. He would only get in my way of bringing you back to me, and I couldn't have that," he said, and Anko was caught in his sweet talk. Her angered expression slowly began to soften, and soon her lips twitched, turning back up into a slight smile. Then she leaned her lips in, kissing him softly before drawing back. She turned back on the woman, wanting to get off of this topic with Orochimaru now; what was done was done. She began to continue her experiment, her movements a little less shaky after her confident argument against Orochimaru.

"Just because you're so attractive... I'll let you off," she said with a nervous laugh, shaking a phial containing a dark green liquid. At the centre was a blotch of blood, but it wasn't reacting at all. No results so far for her, yet Orochimaru just seemed to do experimentations as a second nature to him. She was a little surprised at how she'd just let him off like that, when he'd hurt her friends so badly, but there was no helping her with Konoha. They were in her past, and she had to forget about them. Saying words like that might help her, she decided. She could hear Orochimaru laughing at her words, and after placing the phial away she turned back to him.

"I'm finished with this woman. Nothing happened," she stated, annoyed with the results. She hadn't enjoyed the experience, but at the same time she'd thought that if she was going to do it then she should at least have gotten some kind of result. But alas, there was no luck there for her. Anko closed her eyes momentarily. "I want to leave now," she said quietly. She didn't think she could cope in this room anymore.

Although she'd managed to have a decent conversation and keep her cool, she could feel some kind of pressure on her mind. It was like that with every step she took into the darkness, cutting open humans and experimenting on their bodies, she was getting closer to insanity, closer to some kind of madness. She didn't know how Orochimaru dealt with it all, but she wasn't as strong-willed as him, and her mind was losing itself every day.

"Good work, Anko. I'm sure tomorrow you'll improve even more," he said, hinting the obvious with a smirk. Anko stared at him, a cold feeling in her gut. "That's right. You'll be doing this every day. I don't do one-off's. Now you've offered yourself to doing it, you will learn more, improve, experiment more frequently, and enjoy it," he said, a triumphant grin on his face.

"I won't ever enjoy this," she said coldly, taking off the lab coat. Having worked on the last woman by herself, it had been messier and now her hands were more bloody, as well as her face and feet; she'd stepped in a small puddle of blood at one point by accident. She threw the lab coat at Orochimaru who easily caught it and placed it back on its hook, and then she left the room. She caught Orochimaru's last words before she disappeared down the hallway.

"Of course you'd say that, Anko. But I know you will. It's who you are," he'd said. His words sent chills down Anko's spine as she walked. What had he meant by it was who she was? It disturbed her, because saying that, it made her feel like Orochimaru had more of an insight into whom she was as a person than she did.

* * *

Anko was back in her room after ten minutes of searching for it. She had to give herself a little credit; she was getting better at finding all these rooms, and that was something to be proud of. She wearily dragged herself to her bed, flopping onto it, but she noticed something after cracking open an eye. Her sheets were stained red now in places, and she realised she must have been covered in blood. Her eyes widened slightly, the thought not having occurred to her at first that she would end up caked in blood.

She got up slowly, making her way over to a mirror to see where she'd gotten the blood; then she'd go and have a shower to clean it all off. She definitely needed a shower. That would be just perfect. She wasn't particularly tired, but the day had definitely had an effect on her. It hadn't really sunk in what she'd done yet, but soon enough she would understand just exactly what she'd done, and that it was more than simply 'experimenting.'

Anko approached the mirror, and she felt her heart jump to her throat at first, fright overcoming her. She whirled around, looking for the person she was sure was behind her, but she was alone. Cautiously, she turned back to the mirror, and realised the person she was seeing was her. She raised her hand, making sure, and when the copy in the glass mirrored her movement, her thoughts were confirmed. She touched her face with a finger, running it down her face. She couldn't believe what she was seeing.

Her finger left a line of blood down her face, still bloody from the tests she'd done today, and she grimaced at it. She looked so... different. Her skin had definitely gotten paler by a noticeable degree now, although she was nowhere near as ghostly pale as Orochimaru. Her eyes were also rapidly darkening at the centre and Anko could see the slits developing.

The purple markings at the corners of her eyes were also more noticeable now, nearing a centimetre long. It scared her to see this, because she didn't want to look just like the man who terrified yet thrilled her so much. She remembered earlier where she had bit her lip; she opened her mouth and saw how much sharper her canine teeth were getting. She ran a finger down one, pricking her finger on the end, but she didn't apply enough pressure to draw blood.

She then observed the blood on her body. Her hands were coated, as well as there being quite a few splotches on her face, including the line she'd drawn with her finger a second ago. Her tooth was also bloody now thanks to running a finger down it, and looking down she saw her feet also covered in blood. Looking into the mirror she saw a bloodied monster. That was all she could see, nothing more; it just scared her to think that this monster was her.

"No, I'm not a monster," she said, defying her thoughts. Somewhere deep in the back of her mind a voice spoke up. You are, but that doesn't necessarily have to be a bad thing. She closed her eyes, unable to look at herself any more. It didn't matter what she said, because she knew she looked and had acted like a monster. She'd taken a humans life today just to help further Orochimaru's tests.

"God, what have I done?" she asked herself, trying to steady her rising nerves. She was so messed up, but she felt better than she should have been. Why was that? Anko decided that she'd try and wash away her tainted thoughts with a shower. That would be the best thing to do; have a nice, relaxing time in a shower with the hot water washing away her sins and the blood. She just had to get rid of the blood, and that was what she wanted the most right now.

Anko left the mirror and the reflection of the monster behind, entering her small bathroom. She washed her hands first in the sink so she didn't get blood on the chemise when she took it off, and then slipped the garment carefully off afterwards. She laid it on a shelf, now nude, and moved to the shower. She turned it on, allowing the cold water to spray out of the nozzle, and then waited for it to heat up. After several seconds when the water was at a hot temperature, she stepped in, feeling the water run over her body, releasing the tension in her muscles and washing away the blood.

She felt the steam clear out her head, helping her to order her thoughts and finally just relax. It felt good, and she was glad to be able to just make the world stop for a moment so she could just enjoy herself in peace and quiet. But of course, when it came to Anko's life, she would never, ever, have peace and quiet.

"Hello, my dear," came a silky tone from behind Anko. The entrance into the shower had been behind her, so it was just like him to sneak in whilst she wasn't looking, like the snake he was. Anko wanted to turn around and punch Orochimaru for coming into her shower, especially when she was naked. She was already feeling deep embarrassment, and was about to scream at him, but she felt two hands place themselves on her shoulders, and suddenly she was being treated to a very soothing massage.

Anko melted into it, all rage and embarrassment lost. She forgot she was naked, forgot Orochimaru had just invaded her personal space, and just enjoyed the feel of his hands massaging her back and the hot water that ran down her body. She would have been a little more aware, though, if she knew that the man behind her was as clothed as she was.

For a minute, she was just in perfect bliss, the world not mattering to her at that moment whilst she just simply enjoyed her massage and shower. Every woman would like such a thing, so it was only natural that Anko liked the feeling of it all, too. It was just a shame when the rubbing of her back ended and she slowly woke up from her daze. She felt Orochimaru's hands trailing down her back, tracing patterns, and then one hand hooked around her waist and brought her around to face him. Then she snapped back to reality.

"You're naked!" she exclaimed loudly, eyes widening as she looked from Orochimaru's bare chest down to... other certain areas. She brought her eyes quickly back up to Orochimaru's face in embarrassment, gaping slightly at the surprise of him appearing. "What are you doing in my shower?" she demanded, recollecting her wits.

"Ah, Anko, to think you'd be so cold; have you ever heard of a thing such as a pleasant surprise?" he asked, drawing Anko's body into his with the hand around her waist. She didn't resist, but she was still talking defiantly.

"It's only pleasant if I _want_ it. You coming into my shower whilst I'm... naked, isn't exactly pleasant," she stated, and this time she was met by silence from Orochimaru. It wasn't unlike him, nor like him, so Anko could only let the awkward silence fill the shower with them before he finally responded.

"That's not what your mind's saying," he responded, but Anko's self-pride took charge instead of her mind, the embarrassment of the situation controlling her.

"Get out," she said, but she knew he wouldn't. He never did, and he certainly never took orders from anyone other than himself. Orochimaru chuckled softly instead and turned her around so she faced away from him again, then leant his head forward, his luscious, ebony hair spilling around her neck and shoulder area and his chin coming to rest on her shoulder. They were both under the water's spray now, Anko's purple, let-down hair pressed up against Orochimaru's neck and chest and his black strands draping over her like a protective veil.

Both of Orochimaru's hands were now around Anko's waist, cuddling her to his body. He could have touched her in other places, because he had the right to, now that she was his, but he felt it better to get a happy response from her, seeing it as her reward for helping him in his experimentations today. Anko still felt embarrassment, not knowing what to do at this point. He wouldn't go if she told him to, and she wasn't in the mood for a fight. Orochimaru's head soon came off her shoulder and he turned her back to face him, not liking the uneasy vibe in the air.

"Anko, I don't know why you're blushing. You look extremely beautiful, absolutely perfect," he hissed softly, his words ringing with truth. Why else had he decided for her to be his future body? Because she really was beautiful, and his words had a pronounced effect on Anko, too. She blushed a little harder, but her awkward expression turned to one that was merely shy and happy, and suddenly she didn't feel so uncomfortable.

Did he really think she was beautiful? His words had made a glow of happiness flutter in her heart, and the more she thought about it, the bigger that glow became. In fact, within seconds, she was literally radiating happiness at his compliment. Of all the people in the world, Orochimaru saying those words meant the most to her. There were only three other words that could make her feel on top of the world, but she didn't expect those. Now though, she wiggled with delight, her blush lightening and a positive smile on her face.

"You really think that?" she asked, wanting confirmation. The true smile on her face, not a fake one nor a sarcastic one, just of pure happiness, made the ends of Orochimaru's mouth twitch upwards ever so slightly. No matter what she did, pleasing him or making him feel proud of any efforts she made, she couldn't ever look any better than she did with a true smile on her face. It made her look magnificent, and whether she was covered in blood, dirt, mud, or anything, she always looked her best with that smile on her face. He remembered it from when she was a child too. That smile... Ah, it was wonderful. He rarely allowed himself to feel any kind of happy emotion for anything, but Anko's smile was something from years ago that he just couldn't shake off.

"Yes," he replied, and this time it was Anko that put herself in his arms. Her left hand placed itself on Orochimaru's right shoulder whilst her right arm moved around his side, her hand resting on his back. Her left hand moved to the back of his neck and she pulled him slowly in closer to her, their heads coming closer.

Anko couldn't miss the lust that glinted in the very depths of those mysterious eyes, and they reflected in her own as well. His words had inspired her confidence, not feeling slightly ashamed of her body anymore. He'd said she was beautiful; he admired her body, so she did too. Anko's forehead was a millimetre from his now, their lips just inches away. The side's of their noses touched, and for a minute time stood still.

Then finally... Orochimaru moved in, his lips locking gently over Anko's. Her lips shifted to fit in with his, and suddenly Anko knew what it felt like to have a long, meaningful kiss. Not one of those ravaging, wild ones where it was lust and want that controlled the movements, but a kiss where it was actually emotions taking over. Love; that was what fuelled this kiss. Was Orochimaru even capable of love? Anko didn't know, but standing there with her arms around Orochimaru with her lips on his, she couldn't say she'd ever felt better.

She felt Orochimaru's arms move against her body as his hands found themselves on her back, and Anko's smile broadened as she kissed him. They stayed like that for what seemed like an eternity, both locked in each other's embrace, both kissing each other but none trying to make it more than what it was. At no point did they try and increase the velocity, the passion, instead just sharing between them the slow, meaningful message of what Anko could only believe was love. It was... wonderful.

The water sprayed down on them, a waterfall of water that only made the scene more romantic. Anko couldn't have asked for anything better, and she hoped Orochimaru felt the same way. After such a long time like this, Anko's thought track did wander to her birthday. His snake... although she'd found it horrifying, now she could appreciate it. That snake had brought them together now. It had started the chain of events that had led her to Orochimaru, so she had to be grateful for it.

Finally, Anko parted her lips from Orochimaru's, briefly, to whisper some words that had come to mind with her thoughts.

"That reminds me... Wasn't it your birthday sometime around now?" she said softly, wondering. She couldn't remember exactly when it was, but obviously Orochimaru would. He chuckled quietly.

"Yes... it was. My birthday was two days ago," he said, and Anko moaned back at him.

"So I can't get you a birthday present," she said, resting her forehead on Orochimaru's as she sighed. The Snake Sannin's chuckle merely increased in volume.

"On my birthday... that was the first day you spent with me, and the first day you kissed me. I couldn't ask for a better birthday present, my dear," he responded, a smile on his face. Anko saw it, and she looked up in astonishment. Was he genuinely smiling? She couldn't tell, but his words... he was being too nice today, so out of character, but she didn't care. It would definitely just be towards her. If there had been other people inhabiting this base with them, then he would certainly not have been as nice to her as he had already.

Anko pressed her lips to his again and they resumed their kiss, this time Anko feeling better than ever. She decided that for her, it wasn't about possession anymore; it wasn't about her belonging to him. She brought her lips back one more time.

"I love you..."

The rest of the day had gone by in a blur; although it was one of the best Anko had had in a long time. She knew she wouldn't forget it, or forget the look on Orochimaru's face when she'd told him those three words. She'd meant it, and her tone had shown that, and he really did look shocked. She'd helped him not get too lost on how to respond by resuming their kiss, and from there they'd stayed in the shower until the water from the shower had gotten cold. Then the rest of the day had blurred together.

* * *

The next day hadn't proven very eventful, but keeping to his word, Orochimaru had made Anko work on experimentations again. She'd felt as sick in the stomach as she had the first time, but she hadn't broken down this time. At that improvement, Orochimaru was slightly impressed, but she did subconsciously shake at parts whilst working, the nervousness and fear evident. Orochimaru had guided her through the first person and then let her work on the next two alone.

She did get worse with her shaking on the second body, but Orochimaru didn't intervene, instead watching her take deep breaths and calm herself on her own. When she carried on without his assistance, Orochimaru smiled to himself, pleased with the progress she was making, although she was far from enjoying it. He wanted to change that, but it would take time. They needed to move base soon as well, because this one was sure to be found any time soon, and he had no intention of anyone but _that shinobi _finding this base so he could have him killed, by Anko no less.

Anko had also decided to start up her training again. She'd spent some time that day familiarising herself with her fighting techniques a little bit more, seeing as she hadn't used them in a while. Her aiming was precise, her senses above expectations – thanks to the Jutsu she'd used—and she was quick in her movements.

However, that didn't stop her being a little rough in her movements, and a little messy. She definitely needed to improve, and she wasn't pleased with how good she was at the moment. In fact, if she rated herself, she wouldn't say how good she was, but how bad. When she was in the presence of Orochimaru she was mortally horrible at fighting; she was sure her hit at his face those days ago had been a fluke, so she wanted to get better and actually hit him hard the next time. She needed more training.

Other than her training, that day had been dull for Anko, but the next was far from it. In fact, events didn't go quite like she had hoped, and she found herself facing insanity once more.

Anko woke up in her own bed, a smile on her face. Ever since her shower encounter with Orochimaru she'd been feeling a lot better, the exception being when she had to work in Orochimaru's labs. She yawned, rubbing the sleep from her eyes, and then got up out of bed. She was wearing rather exposing pyjamas, but she didn't ever care, and moved off of her bed to get changed.

Lately, she hadn't been wearing her cloak, skirt and fishnet shirt. Orochimaru's preference to kimonos had led her to wear a nice black one with a snake embroidered onto the back, a symbol of her alliance to Orochimaru. However, during the mornings they usually did his experiments, so for the mornings she always wore a simple top and shorts and wore the kimono later.

Once getting dressed, Anko left her room and wandered down the halls, heading for the labs. She wasn't particularly eager to go to that particular place, but she was quite enthusiastic to see Orochimaru again. She knocked on the door of the lab upon arriving, and was greeted by the call of 'come in'. She opened the door to find the usual bloody mess, and she felt her gut clench.

She really did hate this, but it couldn't be helped. She just had to un-attach herself from what she was doing and she could get through it without suffering too much mentally. She just had to think of other things, and that was all there was to it. Anko walked over to Orochimaru and wrapped her arms around him, leaning her forehead against his before she kissed him on the lips. That lasted for several seconds before Orochimaru broke free and indicated towards the operating table where a young woman lay, unconscious.

Anko sighed, stepping away from Orochimaru and moving towards the woman. That was when she became aware of the other prisoners in the room. One of them was a stocky man, quite handsome (_although nothing compared to Orochimaru, _thought Anko) and looked very angry. He was shouting at Anko and Orochimaru, and it was only now that Anko listened.

"DON'T KILL MY WIFE. LEAVE HER ALONE! I'LL KILL YOU ALL!" he screamed, shouting and pounding his chained fists against the floor. He couldn't save her, no matter how much he resisted, but Orochimaru was staying completely oblivious to him. He wasn't even bothering putting them to sleep, his golden eyes intently focused on Anko.

Anko's caramel eyes were on the man though, watching him scream and struggle. Anko didn't want to watch him any more though, feeling uncomfortable. She looked away, back at the man's wife. She was unconscious, looking strangely peaceful despite the predicament she was in. Anko wondered what kind of life she'd had when she had been with her husband away from Orochimaru. No, she couldn't think about that. But she did feel slightly sorry for them—

SMASH!

Anko reeled, feeling an intense pain in the back of her head. Tears welled up in her eyes, and as her hands flung to the back of her head, she felt around a bit and then brought her hands back before her eyes. What she saw was blood. Her blood. Her eyes wavered, uncertain of what had happened. She felt dizzy, strange, losing her focus. She wanted to cry, but she couldn't, and the pain was extreme. Anko looked at the ground and saw blood dripping onto the ground from the back of her head, as well as pieces of glass and a green liquid.

She realised that the man, the husband, had thrown one of the larger phials at her, hitting her in the back of the head. She felt like there was glass embedded in her head still, and it hurt. A lot. As her pain began make room for other emotions though, she felt something begin to bubble up inside her.

Orochimaru was quickly on the man, breaking his chains and grabbing him by the hair, lifting him into the air. His expression was livid, his eyes trailing from the man to Anko, crouched over and clutching her head. The man tried to attack Orochimaru, but he merely broke his wrists, earning a scream from him. He tried to flail, but Orochimaru held him still after punching him once in the stomach. He would _destroy_ this man for doing that. He would die a slow, painful death alongside his 'precious' wife.

"I'll take care of this scum, Anko," he said, about to take the man over to a second operating table up against the wall. He turned towards it before he heard Anko's voice speak out.

"No," she said, her voice weak at first. Orochimaru frowned, turning back to her. He could see the red mess on her head, making a note to tend to that quickly after strapping the man down to the other operating table; he would perform on him whilst he was **awake**. But Anko was slowly straightening up, her back still a little arched. Her hands left her head, bloody, a piece of glass between two of her fingers that she'd pulled out.

"Hmm?" Orochimaru inquired, watching Anko curiously.

"I said **no**," Anko repeated, finally looking up. Orochimaru was surprised to see a different look in her eye now. It was frightening, although not to him, it would be to others, being a demonic, _insane_ look. She had a dark look to her, her face partly in shadow from the way she stood, and she definitely looked less than sane. Her tone was louder now, darker, crueller. It chilled the man who had stopped struggling in Orochimaru's grasp. Anko spoke again. "_I'm_ going to be the one deal with him."

* * *

I am _so_ sorry about the wait, guys, but here it is, Chapter 11! Thing is, I've been very busy, watching Soul Eater, helping my mum who broke her ankle, and having a social life, as well a revising for tests. :L But yeah, busy life. I really do apologize because it's been quite a few weeks now and I know a few of you have been eager for more Dark Possession. 8D Heh. Dark Possession's going to remain as my only fanfiction at the moment, but when it finishes I'm going to write a Soul Eater fanfiction, because I really do love that way too much. :'D I've got a sort of obssession? xD Hmm.

Anyway, thanks for reviewing, **NinjaSheik, Ryunn Kazan, Szzzzzx, fishyfella, Kise M, Jigoku-Dayu93, ThePsychoMan, Sgt. Mehoff, Ocean Eve, Taichi09, Kunoichi101** and **sayaex.** Your reviews mean a lot.(:

Also, a big thank you to **NinjaSheik, **again, for all the support she's been giving me, as well as for beta-reading this chapter because my Word trial ran out. :L Aha. Thanks for being there for me. :)

Now... onto Chapter 12.


	12. The Insanity

It was time.

Orochimaru stood over a mangled corpse, his hands bloody, but his face showing a wide grin. He'd finally finished his experiments, meaning they'd be able to move bases now. He was more than pleased with the result, meaning that now he'd be able to transfer from body to body. He'd had to experiment on himself at times as well to achieve this, but it had all been worth it.

He wasn't sure whether it would work or not, but from the data he'd gathered so far he was sure it would be successful. He had to test it out, but until they got to one of his main, people-inhabited bases, he couldn't. He refused to use Anko so early on, in case anything did go wrong. She was a little too valuable to lose at such an early time, so she was safe.

His plan, to lure the pitiful Shinobi known as Iruka to his base and have Anko kill him; then they would leave. He had no intention of running into Tsunade's squad, but he was confident that if they did have a run-in then he would be fine. He wanted Iruka gone, and then he would be pleased. Then he would be able to go to his next base with a peaceful state of mind.

It was the early hours of the morning, and Orochimaru knew that later on Anko would be appearing. He wanted to let her do a few more experimentations here before they left, seeing as she'd be more pre-occupied at their next base and wouldn't be able to do this as much as he'd hope for her to. So, now he just had to clean himself up and get things ready for Anko, and so started a new day.

* * *

Orochimaru looked at Anko, bloody and trembling, with fascinated eyes; what was this then? She was showing to him a far more sadistic side; one that he'd thought wouldn't come to the surface until much later, when he'd dragged her into the darkness a little bit more. However, that hit to the back of her head seemed to have done the trick, and now, holding the man who'd hit her, Orochimaru couldn't wait to see the end result.

"He's all yours," Orochimaru said with a sly grin, letting go of the man, pushing him towards Anko. Anko's face was dark, cold, the blood on her head making her look even more terrifying. She stared as the man stumbled towards her, a single, amused chuckle leaving her lips at his pathetic state. Where had all that previous vigour gone? Such a wretched creature...

The tip of Anko's mouth twitched upwards, curving into a maniacal grin as she laughed out loud.

"I'm going to **kill you!**" she laughed, catching the man by his bushy brown hair. She held his head up, bringing his head right up close to her own, locking eyes with him. His were scared, uncertain eyes. Hers were hard to comprehend, only describable in one word: insane.

"You're crazy!" the man shouted, trying to break free, however Anko merely scowled and threw him sideways. His back hit the operating table where his wife lay, and he coughed up blood as he slumped to the ground, the fight knocked out of him. Anko took that time to grab her lab coat and slip it on over her top and shorts, and then strode over to the man. Orochimaru watched with amused features from a distance as Anko grabbed the man's hair again. She leant in closer.

"Scared yet? Stupid brat. I felt pity for you and your wife, but then you went and messed it all up, right? Yeah? BRAT!" she shouted into his face, lifting him up off the ground. He moaned at the pain in his head. "I'm going to **enjoy** this," Anko said, a bloodthirsty grin on her face.

She raised a leg and kicked the man's wife, her body sliding off the operating table and hitting the ground behind it with a thump, the woman not waking from her unconscious state though. Anko then roughly placed the man on the table, not hesitating to pick up the nearest scalpel. She turned it in her fingers, admiring it for a second, before bringing it to the man's face. "You see this? Yup, it's gonna hurt."

She flicked the scalpel, slicing the man's cheek. A thin trail of blood began to slide down his face, and the pain of the small cut caused him to yelp. "Pitiful _dog_, where's your tolerance for **pain!** Only the strong can stand it; the weak will always _die,_" Anko hissed, using her free hand to run over the back of her head where the phial had smashed into her. The touch stung, but she only grinned. She brought her hand back around, showing the man the blood now dripping off her finger.

"_This _is what you must learn to love! Blood, oh, such a glorious thing. Orochimaru _sensei_ taught me the importance of blood, and most importantly, how _good_ it tastes," she said, bringing her finger to her own mouth. Her tongue poked out, licking the red liquid from her flesh, and she made a tasteful 'mm' sound to show how she loved the substance so.

Anko moved her body around the table so that she was standing behind where the man's head rested. His eyes were wide, wavering with fear. She leant over so her head was above his, her mouth just centimetres from his cut. "I wonder what _yours _tastes like," she wondered aloud, a cruel smirk on her face.

Within a second she'd rolled her tongue across his cut, tasting his spicy blood. She gagged. "Disgusting!" she exclaimed, looking revolted by his foul-tasting blood. "Orochimaru's is far nicer than yours, brat."

Orochimaru recalled the events those few days ago, when Anko had tasted his blood for the first time. He remembered it well, and apparently so did Anko. Her madness was enthralling, and he was eager to find out how she enjoyed her experimentation on this man. He watched Anko back off the man suddenly and turn to face him. The look in her eye made it hard for him to suppress a shudder, but he didn't show any weakness, instead questioning her with a raise of an eyebrow.

"I'm not following our usual scheme. This time, he's here for simple **dissection,**" Anko stated, emphasis on the last word as she licked her lips, the man behind her letting out a yelp and trying to get off the operating table. Anko was on him in a flash, her scalpel quickly being held to his throat. The man fell still, sweat rolling down his face, mixing with his blood.

"Feel free to deal with him in whatever way you like, my dear," Orochimaru said; in this situation, he didn't care what Anko did; seeing the sadistic grin on her face told him she was enjoying herself now, teaching the man who'd hurt her a painful lesson. He liked this side of Anko; it excited him.

"Oh, I plan to," Anko said, moving her scalpel from the man's throat down to where he was wearing a few light pieces of raggedy garments. She sliced them off, revealing a muscled stomach, although it was nothing compared to the frame of Orochimaru. His body outdid the rest, or so was Anko's point of view. This man though, she didn't take off his underwear, not wanting to see what would most definitely be outdone again by what Orochimaru possessed. At the thought Anko laughed aloud, making her look even crazier.

"I wonder what happens if I cut you _here,_" she said, saying her last word as she cut down the man's side. He screamed as fresh blood flowed out, severe pain wracking his body. "How long will it take for you to pass out, hmm? I could last for hours, I bet. But you, ha, I doubt you'll last a **minute.**"

She then left him crying, pleading for mercy, and picked up his wife by her hair. She stirred, a whimper of pain leaving her lips at the strain on her hair. Anko shoved her up near to the man, smirking at him. "Your wife, eh? I think she'd want to die before you did, so I'll just help her with that..."

Anko didn't waste any time. Her mind was chanting at her, the same words over and over again. _Revenge. Payback. Suffering. Pain._ She would make him _suffer._

A crimson tide of blood splashed to the ground as Anko pulled back the woman's head and slit her throat, a scream leaving the man at the sight of his beloved being murdered. Anko mocked him further, wiping a finger across the now-dead woman's throat, picking up a smear of her blood. She brought it to her lips and tasted the metallic substance.

"Ah, even her blood tastes better than yours. I guess you just have bad blood. A shame, really, but no matter; I'm just in the mood for _spilling_ yours!" she said, flicking her scalpel back into position. She played with it in her fingers, bloodying her fingers slightly more, and then moved in towards the man. He cried and begged for mercy, whimpering and screaming at the pain he was already in, but Anko was having none of it. Her mind had succumbed to the insanity, and he was suffering her wrath.

"You're a **monster!**" the man screeched, and Anko halted for a second, that single word hitting her like a truck. A monster; she had defied that whilst looking at herself in the mirror. She had said she wasn't a monster, and she had been adamant about it. But how could she say that, really? She just had to look at where she was now.

"Ha," Anko laughed, her expression seemingly cheerful for a second. Then it darkened, her mouth extending in a cruel, evil grin, her expression twisting into a wicked look. "I _am_ a monster," she stated darkly, and then she raised her scalpel. She brought it down quickly like lightning; the man's screaming the last thing she heard before a pool of red engulfed her vision.

* * *

There was blood. A lot of blood. _His _blood... and hers. Ah, the insanity. It flowed through her, taking over her mind and soul. She had just given into it, and let her true nature free. She wasn't meant for good. She wasn't meant to run around for people, doing meaningless missions for them whilst they looked down upon her with scorn and contempt, pretending she had friends when really they all hated her too. No. She was meant for greater things. Power, the 'darkness', **Orochimaru.**

Anko wasn't good. She was bad. She was dark. She was cruel. She could be a traitor, but also loyal to the one person that mattered to her. She could be loving, and she could be hateful. She could be sane, but where would she be then? Anko wasn't sane. She was **in**sane. And she enjoyed killing, and blood, and all the things Orochimaru had looked for in her when they'd first met. He'd found them, but she hadn't. Now, on her pathway to hell, Anko was discovering these things one by one.

Anko's vision cleared, and she saw herself. She was covered in blood, her hands and arms covered in the red substance, both from the man, the woman and herself. She was twitching, trembling from excitement. She could feel the grin on her face, the sadistic grin that relished the bloodshed she'd created. The man on the table lay dead, his throat slit; she'd then dragged it from his throat down his stomach, creating a large gash there too. His wife was lying on the ground, dead also.

Anko moved in to continue her dissection, her scalpel glinting in the bleak light.

"Haha... hahahaha..."

Orochimaru approached Anko from behind, her carnage over. She'd killed two people with a grin on her face. She'd enjoyed it, like he'd said she would in the end, and she looked as frightening as she ever would. He loved it. Anko didn't respond to him nearing her. She was covered head-to-toe in blood, but her insanity had locked her away from the outside world. Orochimaru lightly grabbed her hand, stopping her from dissecting the man, and put his other hand around her waist, pulling her towards him. Her head shot around to look at him, noticing him now; although through the insanity shown on her face was a slightly distant look, as if she wasn't actually there as she cut open the man.

"It's who you are," he whispered, grinning slyly.

* * *

Anko was drowning. She'd never known what insanity looked like, and she hadn't known that it would take the form of blood, but this was it, because she was drowning; drowning in insanity; drowning in blood.

It had started when the phial had collided with the back of her head, smashing against her skin and spilling its contents across her flesh. The liquid had become a never ending stream that flowed into her mind, filling up the space there. Anko had ended up standing in the darkness again, a ringing in her head, unable to think straight. When it had finally faded away she'd noticed the hot liquid beginning to rise from where her feet stood.

But she couldn't move.

Anko had struggled, flailed, tried desperately to escape from the clutches of the red blood that was rising higher and higher. She knew she would drown if she didn't escape, but even if she could, where would she go to? Anko was trapped in her mind, the blood rising above her knees. It kept her trapped in place, and she could only watch with rising horror as it rose to her waist level. Was this the end for her? Anko didn't know.

The insanity was swallowing her up whole, but it did offer comfort. Despite her heart racing, and her fear attacking her from all sides, the insanity, the blood, was warm, encouraging her to give in and let it take over. When she fought against it the pressure on her body increased, and she cried out in pain. When she relaxed, conserving her energy to try and escape again, the pain was released and the insanity only felt like warm water rising over her body, as if she were taking a bath.

She might be fine if she gave in.

Possibly.

Maybe.

She felt a calm feeling spread through her body, and felt complacent with her fate. What was there to fear if you worked alongside that which could destroy you? To resist, to fight; that would be her undoing. She felt her will to fight slip away, and allowed the rising tide of red to sweep up her skin. It couldn't harm her if she bent to its wishes, and so she calmly raised an arm. Her hand reached for the invisible heavens, her eyes closing as Anko smiled.

The blood bubbled up her neck and slowly rose over her head; Anko felt her mind beginning to boil with the flood, melting into the shape of insanity, and she didn't resist at all.

Higher.

Higher.

A hand was all that was left of the purple-haired girl who'd succumbed to the insanity in her mind. A hand was all that was left of a girl who had been so strong in personality before. One cruel, wicked man had warped her, and broken her down to this. He'd broken her. He'd taken her like a toy, played with her, and then broken her; would he now toss her aside like all did with their broken toys?

A hand was all that was left of the purple-haired girl who'd succumbed to the insanity in her mind, and now another hand grasped hers.

Out of the darkness an arm appeared, hand clasping around Anko's tightly and pulling upwards. The blood stopped rising, and the kunoichi was pulled up and out of its grasp. Her arm emerged, followed by her head and then the rest of her body. Anko noticed the retreating presence of the insanity and felt her mind clearing. She opened her eyes and saw a blurry scene, a figure seeming to be pulling her up, radiating a white glow.

"Are you an angel?" Anko mumbled. The person – her saviour – was a heavenly white in colour, and beautiful. They were definitely beautiful, but still blurry. Her eyes began to adjust, and she realised this was no angel. The purple markings around his eyes; the golden hue surrounding his pupils; the confident smile upon his lips; he was definitely not an angel.

"Oh, no," he said in a mocking tone, pulling Anko into his embrace. His arms wrapped around her limp body and pulled her into him, sharing his warmth with her. With no strength to do anything, Anko could only fall into his lap and lay her head against his muscled chest, for he wore no clothes; upon a lazy movement of her eyes, she realised neither was she, but it didn't seem to matter. All that mattered was that she was in the arms of her saviour, safe and sound.

His next words rang with truth in her ears. "But I am a God."

* * *

Anko's eyes grew sharper, snapping from their distant state. She became more aware of where she was and what she was doing, and more importantly, the certain God holding her from behind. She still felt an insatiable bloodlust, rising and falling like waves inside of her, but it was quelled somewhat by the sight of her 'saviour'.

His last words to her in reality were brought to the forefront of her memory, and she bobbed her head once. "Yeah, it is." Tiredness forced her to collapse into him, the events of the morning draining her physically and mentally. Orochimaru easily supported her weight, and an amused chuckle escaped his lips. Oh, she was so entertaining; he was glad he'd picked her up on his trip to Konoha. Who would've known she'd evolve into something like this?

Anko was breathing heavily, and Orochimaru put a hand on her head, stroking her slowly and avoiding the now scabbing wound on her head. She'd lost a lot of blood, and it was taking its toll on her now. "You need a shower," he remarked. "Then once you're clean, you need patching up.

"Now... rest."

Anko obliged and closed her eyes, instantly falling asleep. Orochimaru picked her up, a little more carefully than he would have for any other person, and carried her out of the room. He took her to her room, not intending to let her wash at all. She needed to look grisly for what would happen later this day. After placing her on her bed he sat down himself, and waited.

* * *

Iruka was tired. Tired, unhappy, but determined. He had been travelling for days now, lost in the woods, but for some reason feeling almost like he was actually heading in the right direction. It was a complicated feeling to understand, but somehow he just knew that he was going the right way. Still, he believed he was lost. He had no idea where he was and wanted to sit down and rest for a while, but Anko's life was at stake.

He feared the worst, that she was dead; he'd spent so long looking for her now, who knew what could have happened to her? He began to chew nervously on his lip as he hefted his weight over a fallen log. He was deep within a forest which never seemed to end.

"Huh? What's that?" Iruka said to himself, looking ahead with squinted eyes. A fog seemed to be settling up ahead, thick and dangerous. It wrapped its gassy tendrils around trees and crept across the forest floor, ensnaring all it could. Iruka stopped walking, fear gripping him. He was uncertain of what lay in the fog, and it didn't seem natural at all. He knew he could wind up dead if he was hasty to enter its grasp.

But as soon as he thought of Anko, everything washed away; fear, uncertainty, doubt. He began to walk again, stepping into the fog and soon disappearing.

It was like a dream. Iruka felt light as he walked, and miraculously he didn't trip on anything or bump into any trees. What he wanted to do and what he was doing were two different things; something was leading him on without him thinking about it, and he let it, seeing as he hadn't come to any harm yet.

"This way."

"A little further..."

"Come on."

Iruka snapped back to attention as hissing voices surrounded him in the fog. He didn't know what they were, and he blindly threw a kunai into the unknown. Nothing happened, and the voices continued to urge him on. Iruka's foot caught on a vine and he stumbled forward, his earlier dream-like state lost and his sense of danger coming back all too unkindly. His arm caught on a thorn, ripping his clothing and cutting him, and his cheek scraped against the side of a tree, leaving Iruka with a stinging feeling.

He moved blindly on, his pace picking up. He attained several more scratches, but they didn't bother him and he ran on, scared, panicking. The voices took on a crescendo, getting louder as Iruka reached where he hoped would be the place Anko was. Through fog and forest he charged, until finally.

Light! Oh glorious light. The sun beat down upon the ragged Iruka, the fog retreating back into the forest away from his sweating form. Mud and grass faded against reddy-brown rock, leading to the edge of a cliff. Iruka took one look at the steep decline and shivered, finding him lucky that the fog hadn't extended further. He'd have careered off the side of the cliff and... He didn't want to think about it.

His dark eyes swivelled around and he saw a flicker of movement in the side of an even higher mountain he was already on. It had been only for a second, but he'd seen something. He wanted to walk towards the rocky wall so he could investigate, but a nagging feeling at the back of his head was telling him to walk away, to leave. He felt his feet begin to steer him away, back to the fog. He had to leave, to go. He couldn't stay.

"Release!" Iruka exclaimed, and he stopped. For how much he wanted to save Anko, there was no way a feeling at the back of his head would make him leave. It had to have been Genjutsu, and he was right. He was able to walk towards the mountain-face and extend a hand towards it.

Before he could get near the rock disappeared, and a gaping hole in the rock appeared for him to see, large enough for him to walk through. A set of stairs led down, and Iruka cautiously neared them. His heart was pounding frantically, and he knew this was where she was. He would find Anko here. He lowered his foot and it touched the first step; he tested his weight on it, and making sure it didn't break, lowered his next foot.

As soon as his whole body was through he heard a rumble. The entrance had sealed itself up somehow, and Iruka was trapped. He turned around and tried to get back out, but a solid wall of rock kept him in; he earnestly beat his fists against the rock, but it was firm. Gulping, Iruka realised there was no escape. He'd have to find Anko, and maybe she knew how to get out.

Iruka put on a brave face, steadying himself, and descended down the flight of stairs into the darkness.

* * *

"This way," Itachi said, leading Tsunade's squad onwards. Tsunade's expression was serious, but a little irritated. Mr. Showoff Uchiha had been leading the way for some time now, instead of her who was the proper leader of the squad. The Hyuuga and Inuzuka were following Itachi mindlessly, not thinking about her, and just trying to complete the mission. Tsunade huffed and leapt off another branch, continuing their route.

Itachi led them towards a section of a forest that looked as if a fog had recently been there. A few silvery drifts of the fog still floated around, fading and revealing more of the scenery as time went by. The squad stopped in the middle of it, looking around for any signs of a person having been there. The Hyuuga was about to take a look when Tsunade noticed an obvious trail.

Where Iruka had plundered was now a broken trail of leaves and twigs.

"Look!" Tsunade said, pointing it out. The Inuzuka stepped forward with his dog, eager to sniff out who had made the trail. They made quick work of it, and when they'd finished a confused expression crossed both of their faces. The Inuzuka stepped forward.

"Tsunade... That boy Iruka made this trail. Why would he be out here?" he asked, baffled. Tsunade was now just as confused.

"Iruka?" she repeated. "You sure?"

"Definitely. What confuses me is why he's out here though..."

"He could be going after Anko himself? But why would he do that? Maybe it's pure coincidence... but if it is then he could be heading right towards Orochimaru, and that puts his life at risk. Come on," she said, taking off in the direction Iruka had gone. Now she was leading again, and that made her feel a little better. The other three shinobi quickly followed.

Just before setting off again Itachi looked to his left; he'd known someone was tailing them for some time now, but he'd kept quiet about it. Camouflaged in the forestry was a spy, watching them for a while before going off somewhere, but he always returned. Itachi had long since assumed the spy was working for Orochimaru, so he'd used the spy as a means of direction to get where they needed to go; it was working so far.

Itachi looked ahead again, following Tsunade and the others. They were near to Orochimaru's base now, and apparently so was Iruka. Orochimaru would be in his base, and so would this Anko person.

Everyone was coming together.

* * *

Everything was coming together. He had spies everywhere; Orochimaru smirked, knowing that Iruka was very much on his way. It displeased him to know that Tsunade's squad was also coming, and to know the Uchiha kid was among Tsunade's team made him feel excited but angry; they could very well mess this all up. No, if they were quick... everything would go according to plan.

Anko awoke moments later, her eyelids flickering open and her brown eyes adjusting to the light. The black slits for pupils in her eyes were more prominent now, and Orochimaru watched her slowly get up. He really had to admire how much her appearance had changed. She looked a lot like him, and the dark look in her eye made him all the more certain about their similarity.

Orochimaru had left and cleaned himself after a while of Anko sleeping, ridding himself of blood and dirt and putting on clothing suitable for travel. He'd left Anko bloody and rough-looking and hadn't prepared her any clothes. She'd travel as she was, seeing as they had to leave as soon as they'd dealt with Iruka. He'd packed all his research up and someone was already transporting it to the base they would be travelling to. Then he'd returned to Anko's room. Everything was in place.

"Come on, my dear," he said in his silky voice, and Anko turned her head to look at Orochimaru. She let out a deep sigh, hand moving to her head. It hurt so much. The wound had stopped bleeding, and there appeared to be no more glass in it, but it still ached and was causing Anko a lot of stress. She shut her eyes, trying to block out the pain. "Come with me," Orochimaru continued.

He helped her out of her bed, moving slowly. "Where are we going?" Anko asked, letting Orochimaru do the most part of leading her. She felt tired and worn out, but at the same time hungry for something and raring to go.

She tried wetting her dry mouth with her tongue, but all she tasted was the blood of the people she'd killed yesterday. It set her mouth on fire, her taste buds itching for more of it. Anko squirmed uncomfortably, twitching. She wanted more, she needed more.

"The lab," Orochimaru replied, and Anko grinned. Perfect. The pain in her head forgotten, she started to put the effort in of walking properly, moving alongside Orochimaru as they headed for the lab. Her mouth was desiccated and itching, completely dry and burning for what Anko wanted right now; she had only Orochimaru to thank for giving her such a lust.

They entered the lab, and the metallic smell of blood wafted through both of their nostrils. Orochimaru hardly acknowledged it, but Anko's nostrils flared, a wild look in her eye as she looked down upon the last man up for experimentation.

He was lying on the ground in the corner, chained to the wall. Anko could stand fine now without any help, and waited impatiently as Orochimaru freed the man. Having been given a sleeping pill earlier, he was out cold. Orochimaru brought him to the operating table. "I've completed my research, Anko, so you're free to do as you wish with this man. I have some other things to do though, so I'll be back in a while." With that he left, a sly grin on his face; he could already sense Iruka nearing the base.

Anko's chest rose and fell with her deep breathing. She couldn't keep in her thirst, her lust, her longing anymore. She knew why Orochimaru had brought her down here: to get it all out of her system so she'd be fine again. This poor man in front of her was about to be subjected to unimaginable pain to settle her raging bloodlust.

Her fingers twitched, eager to grab hold of her scalpel and start work on the man, and her grin was widespread and maniacal. Unable to hold it back any longer, Anko stepped forwards.

* * *

Iruka had never been so scared yet so brave. He'd edged down the stairs, wary of anything and everything he saw, and now he was walking through the labyrinth that was Orochimaru's base. He'd find a door every now and again, but after he'd plucked up the courage to finally open them he would find a room full of jars. What was in them he didn't know, because Iruka was quick to shut the door and move on.

He was scared he would find someone other than Anko, primarily Orochimaru. He knew he was dead if he ran into him, but his courageousness was born from his love. He loved Anko, and wanted to rescue her; to hear her brutal words and see her mocking actions, to hear her not-so-funny jokes but laugh along anyway for fear of getting hit; to hear her cheery laugh and to see her beautiful eyes and face, and to be able to declare his love and hope that maybe, just maybe, she shared his feelings.

Those sentiments kept him going, and nothing could have stopped him. After what seemed like endless wandering, he finally stopped outside a door.

It was just like all the other doors, but for some reason it was different. There was a pull inside him that had brought him finally to this door, and a feeling of death and despair hung over it too. It made Iruka shiver, goose-bumps rising on his skin. Despite this, he had some kind of knowing in his mind, and knew Anko was behind this door. His palms were sweaty as he reached out to grasp the door handle.

Click.

It swung open easily, and Iruka moved in. However his feet became stuck to the ground with shock when his dark eyes fell upon _her._ All his effort, determination and hard trekking had led to this moment, and it was all worth it. Iruka's breath was lost as he looked upon the beauty that was Anko.

She looked the same as she'd always been. Tied-up purple hair, cheery face, long coat swishing around her heels. Each small detail was as stunning as the next, and his eyes welled with tears of happiness at finally seeing Anko again. He tried to speak, but his words stuck in his throat and he could only gape. The tears blurred his eyesight, and Iruka moved to rub them away.

What he thought were tears of joy were not as he'd hoped. The tears had come to clean his eyes and show him the truths, because not all was as it seemed to him. As his hand moved away, the blurred form of Anko sharpened, and suddenly he didn't know what he was staring at.

"Wha—Anko?" he stuttered, the grotesque scene before him coming clear. What he saw was a woman loosely resembling Anko turning towards him, wearing a white lab coat that was not-so white anymore. Coated with blood, it was gruesome, alongside Anko's skin. Her hands were especially bloody, as well as the skin around her lips, and the lips themselves.

She looked tired and worn, but her maniacal grin was alive with some kind of fervent desire. She looked slightly excited over something, as well as satisfied. Iruka couldn't figure it out, but he couldn't look at her directly.

At hearing the door open, Anko was surprised Orochimaru was back so soon; she'd thought he would be gone for at least half an hour. She felt good, having just finished up with her last experiment here. Her mouth felt hot from the blood she'd indulged herself with, and the floor was also slick with the crimson substance. She'd enjoyed torturing the man; it'd made her feel alive. She didn't even feel remorse or shock at her actions; she felt strangely content with how she was.

Her grin faltered though when she turned and saw Iruka. At first she thought she was imagining things, but then she realised he was really there. Her grin dropped to a serious expression, worry seeping in. Why was he here? What was he going to do? Iruka was here. Iruka. Was. Here.

"Iruka?" Anko asked bluntly, eying him. It hadn't really sunk in, but when it did she didn't know what else to do. She felt back with a hand and put it on the operation table, steadying herself as memories of Konoha came rushing to her; she'd moved the mangled remains of the corpse already.

She could barely stand up now, the memories crushing her. Her 'date' with Iruka came back even stronger, and she felt as if she could choke. She tried to swallow, but all she could taste was blood. Oh god, why did Iruka have to be here now?

Iruka's fear glued him to the spot. He wanted to go and comfort Anko, to help her, but he couldn't move himself. The sheer mass of blood in the room had already freaked him out, and he'd taken a look around. Reacting as badly as Anko had, he was shaking. He saw body organs on the floor, jars of other body parts on shelves, skeletons chained to walls, and everything you could ever dream of to be in hell in this single room. He was scared out of his wits. He couldn't even remember Anko was here anymore.

He backed away. He had to get out of the room, and fast. Iruka scrambled back in what direction he thought was the door, his eyes wide and wavering and his body shaking violently. Finally he bumped into something, although from the shape of it it wasn't the door. His head cranked around, and he took in the image of the one man he'd feared to find.

Orochimaru was staring down at Iruka with a raised eyebrow, a sinister glint sparkling in his golden eye. To Iruka it seemed like his whole world had crashed down on top of him. He was completely and utterly helpless, and he wasn't sure what hell he was in, and whether he was going to make it out alive. He shut his eyes, feeling his legs wobbling beneath him. How much more could he take?

"Iruka..." came a soft voice from somewhere. Iruka stopped shaking, recognition of the voice 'healing' him. His terror was wiped away in the moment that he slowly opened his eyes, looking back up in not the direction of Orochimaru, but where Anko stood. The panic and sheer blindness to all but fear slowly left his eyes and he could see the purple-haired wonder again, but this time he had to realise this was really her, no matter how gruesome she appeared.

And so he did. He bit his lip as he looked at Anko, trying to take in the bloody mess that she was, and finally he did. He came to terms with it, and managed to speak.

"Anko... I've come... to take you back to Konoha!" he declared, although his voice was breaking. He knew who stood behind him, and he was trying to pretend the snake wasn't breathing on the back of his neck, daring him to run away. If he did think that Orochimaru was there, he would be dead within a matter of seconds, so he put his eyes on Anko. "O... Orochimaru... he can't keep you here! Please... come with me!" His voice then broke. Anko only stared at him.

Anko had regained her calm, standing stock still and gazing at Iruka with solid eyes. "I..." she started, but was cut off by a harsh, yet soft, laughing noise. Anko's eyes rose to look at Orochimaru, who was walking around the timid Iruka. He had a cruel sneer on his face, piercing eyes locked onto the Konoha ninja. Iruka finally looked at Orochimaru, and Anko could see his hands curling into fists.

Iruka could only feel anger. He'd thought that when he properly looked at Orochimaru he would be frozen with fear again, but this time he only felt bubbling rage. Orochimaru had taken Anko from him, from Konoha, and had ruined her life so far. Iruka wanted to make things right for Anko today. She couldn't possibly want to be with Orochimaru. He was a psycho, a maniac! He was crazy, and wasn't the one for Anko. Poor Anko, she must have felt so distressed the past few days. Who knew what Orochimaru had done to her?

Iruka grit his teeth in frustration, his palms sweaty. He wanted to hurt Orochimaru so badly. And when he talked in his smooth, hissing tone, oh god it set his feelings on fire; the hatred was intense.

"Iruka... Your attempt to bring back Anko will be futile, I can assure you. Nothing you can say or do will bring her back, because you're too late. She's mine, and always has been. You never stood a chance," he said with scorn, watching Iruka's defiance rise up.

"You're a liar! Anko has every choice to make in her life! You can't influence her any longer! You can't control her! She isn't an object to have in your possession!" Iruka yelled, temper rising.

"Ah, but you see, Iruka, Anko has made her choice, and she's open to make many others. I've let her make her choices, and she's chosen _me_. Give it up already. You're just a little boy way in over his head. Anko doesn't love you." Orochimaru's last words stung deep, and Iruka felt tears building at the corners of his eyes. He moved, throwing his fist forwards at Orochimaru's face, a tear sliding down his cheek.

"LIAR!" he screamed, shock overwhelming him when he felt contact on his arm. He opened his eyes, and found that another hand had grabbed his wrist, stopping his fist from connecting with Orochimaru's face. Iruka looked, and saw that it wasn't Orochimaru who had stopped him, who was smirking so devilishly at him, but Anko, her eyes gazing at him with a mix of sadness and determination. There was a hint of something else in her eyes, but he couldn't figure out what it was.

"Iruka... please leave," Anko whispered. She looked away from him at that point, and Iruka tried to pull his hand free. Anko's grip was strong, cold, and not warm like it had been on their date. She was so different now. He could see it in her eyes, on her face, in her personality. She looked less like Anko now, and more like _him._ He noticed the little details, and they chilled him to his very core. She looked so similar now that it was like seeing Orochimaru's double in the form of a female, and he couldn't take it. He really couldn't.

"What are you doing Anko! Why are you doing that! Come on! Come with me, please! I'll help you escape! Why would you want to stay here!" he yelled at her, but Orochimaru answered him back.

"I told you, little boy. She's mine now..." he let the last words roll off his tongue slowly, enjoying the taste of his victory already. Iruka didn't want to hear the words.

"PROVE IT!" he bellowed, and with those words he felt Anko's grip slacken. She pushed him away, and he stumbled backwards, tripping and hitting the ground with a thud. He looked back up instantly, ignoring the rising pain, watching as Orochimaru licked his lips hungrily.

"As you wish," he said slyly, and the next minute was the worst of Iruka's life. He watched in shock and horror as Orochimaru slid his arm around Anko's body, pulling her into him, and saw their lips connect. It killed him inside because... it was one thing for this to happen, but Anko wasn't resisting. Why wasn't she resisting! Her arms rose up slowly, one wrapping around Orochimaru's neck and the others' fingers twining through his raven black locks.

It was shattering because they kissed slowly, and every second ripped a larger hole through Iruka's chest and heart, which had quickly torn into two pieces, and then a thousand more. Orochimaru had been right, and he hated to admit it. He really did, but what bigger evidence was there than that in front of his eyes? Yet Orochimaru spited him further in his time of heart break, the snake's long, pink tongue flicking out of his mouth. Iruka nearly died inside when Anko only leaned further into the Sannin.

Tears streaked down his cheeks, and he was unable to continue watching, but he did. He couldn't tear his grip from the pair. He realised what he'd seen in Anko's eyes earlier than he hadn't been able to name. It had been love. She loved Orochimaru, and he'd been too dumb to see it. And now he was being tortured in the worst way possible. He knew that Orochimaru was only using her. He knew that Orochimaru didn't care about her in the way she did for him at this moment, but there was nothing he could do about it.

When Anko and Orochimaru finally moved apart from each other, Iruka was in a state of blankness. He stared ahead with no emotion, broken inside. He was unresponsive, the only form of life being the tears that ran down his cheeks.

Anko was in a slight daze, the kiss a second ago from Orochimaru having stunned her. He was so... _good. _She knew what she'd done to Iruka. It was like she'd kicked a puppy whilst it was down. Although at the moment all she could think about was Orochimaru, and the snake took advantage of that.

"I told you..." he hissed softly to Iruka, whose eyes blinked once in response. Iruka felt numb to the world at this second, but the next few words that entered his ears did bring about some form of sense. "Kill him," Orochimaru said.

Anko breathed slowly out, looking down at Iruka with distant eyes. If only he'd stayed in Konoha. Then he wouldn't be in his mess. He was just a little child, and he would pay the price for his stupidity in coming here. She was out of his reach... of anyone's reach. It was pointless to try and bring her back.

"Anko, no!" Iruka managed to cry out, just as she moved towards him. Iruka hadn't thought she would go that far, but she was, and he had to get away! From the depths of one of the pockets on Anko's lab coat she pulled a kunai, sharp to the very point. She swung it around and stabbed forwards with it, aiming to pierce the middle of Iruka's head. Her face held no emotion, as if she was trying to detach herself from the situation. Iruka managed to pull out a kunai in time to block hers, and the two pieces of steel grated together as they battled for dominance.

"Why are you trying to kill me!" Iruka demanded in exasperation. Anko sighed, speaking back in a low tone.

"When you love someone... you're willing to do anything for them. You proved that yourself by coming here, Iruka." When she finished her words Iruka was momentarily stunned. She spoke pure truth, but he'd always hoped that when she said something like that, it would be because she loved him, and not Orochimaru. And the way she said his name at the end; it was spoken softly, gently almost. It was unlike any Anko he'd ever heard before, but none the less, the way she said it melted him, and he gave up the battle.

His kunai clattered across the room, and he sank lower to the ground in defeat, closing his eyes.

"Are you going to kill me, Anko?"

"...Yes."

* * *

**Authors Note:**

I have no excuses. I'm so sorry guys for the long time it took to update this. ;3; I'm so terribly lazy, and I feel like I've screwed up this chapter because I haven't written in ages. o Asdfghjkl; This was the chapter I'd been excited about writing as well. xD I was gonna write more, if I'm gonna be honest, but it felt dramatic to leave you on a cliff hanger like that. I'm so evil. TROLOLOLOLOL.(:  
I'm out of shape on , and they've got a screwed up new bar at the side which is annoying me. :L Oh well. Hope you guys liked this chapter, and I'm pretty sure I just set a record for overusing the word 'blood' in one chapter. EXCUSE MY LACK OF IMAGINATION OF DESCRIBING IT ANY OTHER WAY. ;n; Well then. I'm done here. Gonna attempt another chapter soon. :L

Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter. I'll start naming every one again next chapter, but for this one it's currently 2:55 in the morning and I can't be bothered. Sorry. :L But seriously, thanks to those who did review, and you know who you are. :3

THANK'EE. 3 and sorry for the wait; thanks for being so patient with me. :3


	13. On The Road

An odd silence had settled over the laboratory, one more threatening than peaceful. It brought upon the three figures in its midst a creeping doom; it threatened to break out at any second and wreak death upon any one of them. Orochimaru stood to the side, his mouth spread in a triumphant smirk; Anko stood a few feet ahead of him, eyes boring down upon the figure below her, kunai in hand; Iruka was on his knees, eyes wide as he waited for the blow that would end his life.

Anko was confident in her pose, stance unwavering and weapon pointed threateningly at Iruka. The victim himself felt calmer than he should, being faced with the death he was sure to meet. His eyes showed acceptance whilst betraying his despair at the loss of his one true love, but his figure never quivered in fear, and he managed to hold strong.

"Are you sure... Anko?" Iruka whispered, averting his gaze from the kunoichi for a brief span of seconds. She didn't take more than the length of his question to reply. She spoke shortly and sharply, cutting across his kindling hope of a change of heart.

"Yes." With her answer, Iruka dipped his head in acknowledgement. So be it. At least he would die knowing he had tried his best to get her back. He cast a dark glare at Orochimaru, earning an amused chuckle in return, and then faced back towards Anko. He realised now that he'd been played all along. He would never have found Orochimaru's base on his own – the twisted snake had meant for it to happen so they would end up in this exact situation. Orochimaru _wanted_ to see him hurt, betrayed, and dead.

He studied Anko's features more closely than before, too. He saw the slits in her irises, the purple tips to her eyes, and the paleness to her skin. It sickened him to the core, for it marred her beauty as he had seen it before all of this had occurred. And for how much he loathed Orochimaru, to see Anko developing his main traits in appearance made him want to scream. Why should she look like that devil!? He rocked forward slightly, overcome by emotion.

Orochimaru had warped and twisted her, dragging Anko into the hell he ruled over. She had been a ray of sunshine to his day in Konoha: that single, funny woman who could crack a joke at anything and cheer even the glummest of people up. But Orochimaru had torn that away from Anko. All Iruka saw now was a shell of her former self, filled to the brink with hatred, anger, and a cruel pleasure in inflicting pain on other people. He hardly recognised her in terms of personality.

Looking deeper, although it pained him, he really understood how much she'd changed. She wasn't happy, light-hearted and kind anymore. No... She was dark, twisted... and evil. Just like Orochimaru. Just... like... Orochimaru. "You've ruined her," he growled to the Sannin. "Everything that made her a great person... you ruined it."

Orochimaru eyed Iruka with disdain before shaking his head. "You are mistaken, my dear Iruka," he chided, "I have simply brought out the best in her. Brought out that which I find... pleasing." His words were meant to sting.

"More like twisted her to your liking," Iruka spat back. He cast one final glance at Orochimaru before turning himself fully on Anko. "JUST DO IT." He could stand no more dawdling.

And so she did. Iruka's eyes widened as Anko's kunai sliced horizontally across his chest, easily cutting through his clothes and digging its sharp edge into his skin. It was like a line of fire that increased in intensity with each second. His heartbeat pounded in his ears, his body shook violently with small spasms, and blood poured from his chest. He became disorientated and blanched almost immediately, eyes flicking upwards to watch as Anko raised the blood-stained kunai for a final time.

The world moved in slow motion as she swung the weapon around in an arc towards his neck, aiming for the kill this time. Iruka had accepted her decision, but had doubted that she would put it into play. For all the cruelty he could feel emanating from her tortured soul, he hadn't thought this would happen. He thought she still had a bit of humanity in her to spare his life. But he was wrong. She had lost her humanity as she had now lost him. She had lost herself.

_Clink!_

A second before the cold steel of death hit Iruka, Anko swiftly adjusted her body and flicked her wrist upwards, pulling the kunai out of its trail and up to deflect an oncoming projectile. A second kunai bounced off its shining edge and clattered to the ground, where Anko spared it a quick look before letting her eyes welcome their new guests. It seemed Tsunade's squad had finally managed to catch them.

"What a pleasant surprise," drawled Orochimaru, narrowed eyes fixated on the band of people who had so quickly slipped past his traps and reached him here. Although, he did notice the absence of one member – the Inuzuka – who his spies had said was in Tsunade's party before. The Hyuuga was standing at the front of the party now – obviously having used his Byakugan to deflect projectiles sent their way from traps. Tsunade then made her way forwards, her expression that of anger.

"Your tricks and traps killed our team mate!" she growled, eyes staring intensely at Orochimaru. Then she heard a desperate gasp from the Hyuuga beside her, and let go of her rising fury for that second to take in what had and was happening. The Hyuuga's point of interest was Iruka, who had crumpled weakly to the floor, clutching at his chest. Blood pooled around him, and a few seconds later he passed out. Tsunade's first instinct was to reach down and heal him before he could die, but a rush of wind caused her hand to flinch backwards as Anko swung the kunai forward. It missed by an inch.

Tsunade diverted her attention to Anko for the first time. She scowled, a look of intense disapproval and anger flashing across her expression. Anko stared back with mutual anger; however she could see Tsunade's concern for Iruka growing with each second. Tsunade managed to note the changes in Anko easily and quickly, and wondered what had made it come about. However right now she needed to set in motion a plan she'd been formulating.

"Itachi!" Tsunade snapped, and the teen appeared from behind the door. "Take on Orochimaru whilst I heal Iruka, and Murasaki: you handle Anko. Don't die." She barely had to finish her sentence before her two team mates sprung into action. Orochimaru was obviously going to fare worse. He had planned to try out his new technique on the Uchiha, but he needed Tsunade and the Hyuuga out of the way before he could even attempt such a feat. He had confidence that Anko could kill the Hyuuga easily enough, but as soon as Tsunade got involved things would get complicated. Plus, he was angry that Iruka might not die after all.

He would have to fight the Uchiha properly until he could get a hit in on Tsunade, but the more he thought about it the bleaker his plan seemed to get. It would be impossible to fight in such a small room without getting hurt. Even with his skill, Anko had a high chance of dying. It didn't matter as much as his own life, but he'd prefer it if she came away alive. He realised that they would have to escape. He was loathe to admit, but this was beyond him, and he vowed to himself to destroy them another day.

Opening his mouth to issue his orders, Orochimaru had to bite back the words as Itachi lunged at him. He retaliated swiftly, hands moving in a blur as snakes shot out from the sleeves of his clothing, shooting towards the Uchiha. Itachi didn't even bat an eyelid as he disposed of them, fighting back with his own hand seals; a fireball two times bigger than his own head flew at Orochimaru with speed.

Meanwhile Anko was locked in combat, fending off the Hyuuga's deadly strikes whilst trying to deal back her own. She dodged where she could, taking hits when she could not, and had begun to weave a dance around the laboratory. She could feel the stench of death affecting her opponent, although his skill outmatched his unease, but she was already creating a plan.

For Murasaki, the few moves that would have come in handy were rendered useless in the small room, where he could just as easily strike a friend as well as a foe. Thus he stuck to hand-to-hand combat, struggling to subdue his enemy as Anko wriggled out of his reach every time he nearly had her. He was lead forwards and back as they stepped around the operating table, both of them fighting for dominance, or so it seemed.

Anko's face didn't give away her tactics. She neither smiled nor allowed herself a moment of satisfaction as the Hyuuga moved to her wishes. He was aware of the puddles of blood around the room, but when Anko's attacks increased in fury he had to keep his eyes away from the ground in order to not get stabbed in the face. He'd managed to cut off a fair few of her chakra pathways and disable her use of chakra, but she seemed bent on using her kunai to kill him instead of Jutsu – ultimately, that made his technique quite useless, so he focused on simply delivering blows to kill her instead.

A numbing tingle spread through the areas the Hyuuga had struck, however Anko paid them no heed. She didn't register the pain that rippled through her system when her enemy managed to catch her, nor the blood that flowed out of the cuts she'd acquired. Her whole mindset was charged with bloodlust, and a dark anger fuelled her stabs and punches as she grappled with her foe. After a minute of fighting, Murasaki finally seemed to gain the upper hand, striking successfully multiple times in quick succession.

He managed to break the wrist Anko used to swing her kunai, where upon she tossed it into her other hand – she was less capable with her left hand, but it was better than nothing – and also delivered a nasty punch to her jaw, causing Anko to become disorientated for a moment before regaining her senses in time to avoid another swing to her head. Her heightened senses helped her, and she relied heavily on them at times during the fight, whilst at other times she did not. However with a few hits in now, Murasaki grew overconfident.

He began to make mistakes, where he would misjudge distances or the speed of Anko's movements. Twice she struck his left shoulder, dislocating it, and he howled with pain at the strike. He began to grow more careful again, but it was already too late. Anko had led him to the exact spot she needed, where the ground was slick with blood and balance was hard to obtain. The kunoichi darted over the crimson puddles into spots that her feet would hold on. Murasaki, eyes set on Anko, didn't realise what he'd slipped on until he was falling.

It was a simple matter for the Hyuuga to quickly manoeuvre his body and get back up, or use Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven to shove Anko away, but Anko didn't spare him that leisure, nor could he use his Jutsu without hurting Tsunade or Itachi. The last thing Murasaki saw was the deep, burning hatred in the female's eyes before she cut down his life, the sharp steel of her weapon sinking itself into his chest and puncturing his heart. Looking into Anko's eyes as his own life slipped away, he didn't just see her anger, but felt it, and understood why. Her eyes betrayed how complicated a person she was, but he felt like he understood her in the brief second before he passed away.

His body hit the ground with a thud, droplets of blood splashing upwards upon impact. The Hyuuga's own blood joined the puddle as it spread outwards a few inches more. Anko left the dead body immediately, sparing no time to look at the bothersome Konoha shinobi. She broke into a run towards Tsunade, who was labouring over Iruka's unconscious body, healing the wound across his chest with glowing palms. Anko winced slightly as her broken wrist bounced with her stride, but focused on attacking.

She couldn't use Jutsu thanks to Murasaki, and her right wrist was crippled, so all she could hope for was to distract the Sannin. That way Orochimaru might get a hit in. Across the room she noticed the man himself manage to land a devastating blow on the Uchiha, only for his form to be replaced by one of the chairs set up against the side of the room. Their battle resumed.

Tsunade looked up as Anko charged at her, and her former scowl returned. She'd healed Iruka now, the skin across his chest as smooth as it had been before, although still patched with blood. She rose up, meeting Anko head-on as the purple-haired girl threw her kunai at her. Tsunade cocked her head to the side and folded the fingers on her right hand down, save for her index and middle finger. As the kunai whizzed at her, she shifted her feet and jabbed upwards with perfect timing and precision. Her fingers knocked the steel and pulled it off balance, and then with another swift movement she hooked her index finger through the ring at the beginning of the weapon and spun it back around, re-directing its course back at its owner.

Anko threw herself to the side, stunned by Tsunade's movements. She'd executed the move perfectly, and now Anko was the one dodging her own attack. The kunai flew past and embedded itself in a wall on the opposite side of the lab. The power and speed with which Tsunade had returned her weapon was unnatural, and Anko started to grasp just what she was dealing with. She was a reckless fool, but that she had to be lest she disappointed Orochimaru – what would he think if she just stood by the sidelines, afraid only because her foes were stronger than she.

Landing on her broken wrist, Anko gave a yelp of pain. Her wrist and arm burned with each small movement she made. Anko rolled back up to her feet though, trying to ignore it. If she succumbed to pain then she would never win. She launched herself back into the fight.

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Tsunade didn't understand Anko's motives. It was clear that she was angry at Konoha for the way she'd been mistreated, and that she still held her affection for Orochimaru even after all those years apart, however she looked like she'd progressed past those things. She still held that anger and affection, but there were other things keeping her bound to the snake now. She sensed the longing to be close to him, and the determination in her eyes to impress.

Biting her lip slightly, Tsunade tried to figure the girl out. She could see the way she felt comfortable in the bloodied lab, because her posture was more relaxed than stiff with a tense nervousness. In that respect she guessed she'd spent a good amount of time in this room, and had grown accustomed to it and the gruesome events Orochimaru held inside. She drew from this fact that Anko would have some ideas and knowledge of what Orochimaru was up to – also, because Orochimaru was letting her run around his lab, this meant there must be some level of trust between them. That, or Orochimaru believed she wouldn't try and run away, or couldn't.

Thoughts ran through her head in seconds, theories and ideas that appeared fleetingly before disappearing in a flash. She was analysing Anko, adding to her thoughts now that Anko hadn't had a problem in killing Murasaki, something Tsunade felt slight grief over. With two of her team mates dead, she felt as if she'd somewhat failed. She now resolved to keep Iruka and Itachi alive no matter what. Anko wasn't who she had been - despite receiving a lot of negativity from Konoha, she had dealt with it, and she had had friends who cared a lot for her. Now she was mercilessly killing ninjas from the village she had lived in not more than a month ago.

Drawing her thoughts to a conclusion as Anko leaped back at her again, Tsunade decided there were only two courses of action she could take. She needed information, and she was determined to draw it out from Anko. She could either capture her and take her back to Konoha, or manage to lead her outside the room and force the information out of her there. Itachi was skilled enough to keep Orochimaru busy, but not for long. She had to be quick.

Tsunade watched Anko swing her right leg around in an attempt to kick her in the jaw. She was miles stronger than Anko - for all she wanted to fight, Anko would never best her. Bringing her hands around, she clapped them shut on the kunoichi's ankle, stopping it a few inches from her face. Tsunade then twisted her leg so Anko lost her balance and fell to the floor with a thud. Keeping her leg up high, Tsunade made sure Anko couldn't lash out and hit her.

"Itachi! Keep him from escaping for a few minutes more!" Tsunade commanded, before tightening her grip on Anko and escaping the room with her in tow. She kicked the door shut on the way out, leaving Itachi and Orochimaru to their fighting; just before she'd left Orochimaru called out to her.

"She won't break to you, Tsunade. I've already broken her. She'll never go back." And then the door swung shut. Sharp frown lines appeared on Tsunade's face as she thought about his words, but she didn't waste time and quickly moved to drag Anko up to her feet. Pushing her against the wall, she stared into the girl's dark, angry eyes, and began to speak.

"What are you doing," she said in a low voice, a threatening tone lacing each word together. "You've changed. What happened." It wasn't a question, but a demand for an answer. A growl rumbled from Anko's throat before she replied.

"Nothing," she said roughly, staring into Tsunade's eyes, unwavering. "He," - Tsunade knew who she was talking about – "is the only person who has ever accepted me, and I will do whatever he wants. I am his." She raised her head a little higher at that statement, as if proud of it. Tsunade was disgusted.

"No, you are not an object to be taken possession of. You are a human being just like me or anyone else here, or in Konoha. You have a free will to do what you want!" she exclaimed, eyes narrowing in distaste to Anko's choice of words.

"I have never been treated as anyone's equal. But if I'm to go with anyone, I'd want to be with someone who loves me. You don't understand! You haven't lived my life and gone through the things I have!" Anko spat, her emotions flaring. "No one has ever had someone mean so much to them as Orochimaru means to me."

"You would give up your dreams for him!?" Tsunade retorted. "Do you honestly think he loves you? He's using you, just like he did before. He sees potential in his peers and he goes out of his way to manipulate them, until they've bent to his will and follow him like slaves. Just wait until you're surrounded by more of his little minions, and then see how much attention he pays you. You mean nothing to him, but you mean something to me, and the rest of Konoha. Don't let yourself be represented by him!"

Tsunade brought up a finger, and Anko felt the touch of fear in her heart. With her strength, Tsunade could crush her easily, even with just that one finger. Instead of pain though, she felt her touch the skin around her eyes; she rested her finger on the purple markings, an inquisitive glint to her eyes. "How did this happen?"

Anko flinched with the contact on her skin, and Tsunade drew back. Then she looked away from her, speaking her next words with scorn. "I wouldn't tell you even if I was dying." Her eyes widened though as Tsunade punched the wall directly beside her head, anger in her eyes. A deep crack spread from beneath her knuckles, running a few centimetres up the wall.

"Dammit, Anko, stop it! Do you take pleasure in looking like that monster? What has he done to you!?" Tsunade yelled, desperate to know. She wanted to know how one man could ensnare someone so easily, and drag and twist them into something so far away from who'd they'd originally been that it was impossible to tell who they were anymore. A voice that wasn't Anko's replied.

"I have only given her what she wants," came the cruel hiss of Orochimaru, his lean figure moving out from the doorway of his lab. Tsunade whipped her head around to look at him, eyes wide.

"What did you do to Itachi?" she whispered, afraid of the answer.

"Oh, I only knocked him out. He stood no chance when I started fighting properly, but I have further plans for him in the future, so I left him his life, at least." Orochimaru spoke casually, golden irises trailing from Tsunade to Anko. Tsunade seemed relieved at the revelation, glad to know not everyone she had brought with her was dead. Anko leaned slightly against Tsunade's grip, testing to see if it would be possible to try and get away; her hold was as strong as stone. "Now, what were you saying?"

Tsunade's moment of relief quickly vanished, her muscles tensing as she replied to Orochimaru. "Anko," she said through gritted teeth. Orochimaru smirked at her, crossing his arms.

"She lost her freedom the moment she took my hand," he said. "You can ask her again and again and she will never return to Konoha. She will never leave my side." He let his words sink in, and Tsunade turned her head back to Anko.

"Why?"

"You know why." Tsunade could feel her pain, her hatred, her anger. She could sense the radiating bloodlust and the want to inflict pain on anything she could. She had drawn into herself, yet let Orochimaru in. He'd knocked down her defences and taken over her mind – he had broken her down until she could take it no more, and submitted to him. She could see it all now. He'd destroyed her soul and fixed it to his liking, and Anko didn't know any better. For all the hardships she'd faced, the simple touch of her old sensei could crack her, and it was that that led her so easily into his grip.

"You won't change your mind," Tsunade stated, and Anko shook her head.

"He's like a poison that spreads through your body. It sets you on fire, and threatens to destroy you, but submission is the antidote that can make the difference between life and death." She dropped her voice to a whisper. "He gives me a reason to live, and I would gladly die for him a thousand times over. He gives me purpose, and for that I will gladly work for him for the rest of my life. I told you..." Her voice rose again. "Konoha will never have a hold over me again – I belong only to Orochimaru." She finished there, and Tsunade shook her head. Her speech was bold, but foolish. She was tainted with Orochimaru's evil, which was plain to see. However with her decisions, Tsunade had to follow her calls of duty.

"I told you that if you went with Orochimaru, people would hunt you down for the rest of your life. I wasn't lying, Anko. You've been twisted in ways I never thought possible, and I can't ignore that, so as a Sannin I will end you and Orochimaru's lives, right now!" Tsunade let go of Anko to draw back her fist, gathering chakra down her arm to strengthen the impact. A strong punch to the neck would crush her throat and stop her from breathing – she would die instantly. However, before she could strike Orochimaru's tongue shot out from his mouth, whipping around and catching Tsunade's arm. It provided the distraction Anko needed to slip out from Tsunade's immediate area of contact and avoid being killed.

Tsunade jerked her arm backwards, the power pulling Orochimaru towards her with speed. She used her other fist to punch him square in the face, but instead of a satisfying crunch she felt the body melt into mud – he had used a clone. She grimaced, irritated with his stupid tricks. He was a coward for not fighting her directly. She caught sight of Anko slipping away down the hall, but was more concerned with where Orochimaru was.

When she couldn't find him, she concluded that her best course of action would be to get Itachi and Iruka and leave as fast as possible. Dread filled her when she realised that in her haste, she had left Iruka in the room with Itachi and Orochimaru. She had a nasty feeling that he would be... She shoved her thoughts away from the image, swiftly entering the lab once more and looking around. Itachi was slumped against a wall, a few scratches running along his arms and blood streaming out from a wound at the back of his head – probably where he had hit the wall. Iruka was nowhere to be seen.

Tsunade was aware that she could do no more for Iruka now. If he was with Orochimaru and Anko, then he was either dead already or in a situation that she wouldn't be able to save him from – if Orochimaru did actually intend to kill him. Her hands tightened into fists, frustration causing her to shake. Everything had gone so horribly wrong. If she hadn't stopped to talk to Anko, and just killed her, then she could have aided Itachi and overcome Orochimaru. Instead she had taken too long, and now Iruka could be dead because of it.

Squatting down next to Itachi, she made quick work of his injuries and healed them. Then she picked him up as effortlessly as a mother might her child, and left the lab for the final time, she hoped. With Itachi unconscious she knew it would be unwise to seek out Orochimaru, so resigned to the fact that she would have to return to Konoha with her findings, her mission a failure. Midori, the Inuzuka, had rushed recklessly into Orochimaru's base and been struck down by his traps. Murasaki had been slain by Anko.

Tsunade grunted as she hefted Itachi along the halls of the base, thinking about Orochimaru and Anko as she walked. It seemed the serpent had finally found himself a trustworthy snake.

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Anko and Orochimaru had escaped the base quickly, for explosives had been set to detonate a mere five minutes after their departure. Anko had managed to persuade the Sannin that bringing Iruka with them to the next base would prove to be more fun than letting him escape, however she kept her real motivations to herself. She had found the talisman Iruka had given her for her birthday in his pocket, as well as the photo of her and Orochimaru. She realised he'd been in her apartment after she'd left. She took the items from him; she had no belongings of her own since going with Orochimaru, so it would be nice to own at least these things.

Orochimaru had tasked her with carrying the boy, which she took on with no complaints. Well, that was until she realised she couldn't actually carry him due to her broken wrist. Orochimaru regarded it with bored eyes before using his own talent with healing to fix it quickly. Then Anko picked Iruka back up and they went on their way. It did lead to a slower pace than she fancied, however she made no comment about it and continued to try and keep up with Orochimaru.

After five minutes of running, both from the explosives and from Tsunade – should she have given chase –, they finally stopped and slowed down after they heard the resounding boom as the base went up in flames. The trees rustled as the force of the explosion spread out to where they walked, but it soon settled. Nothing would remain of the base once everything died down, and no one would find any remaining evidence of Orochimaru's plans.

With that done they were finally on their way to Orochimaru's main base. When Anko asked why their load was light, and they weren't carrying the heap of equipment and experiment results Orochimaru was sure to have wanted with them, he told her how he'd had people transport it over for him earlier that day. She wondered aloud how he would know if anyone stole anything of his, or looked at anything secret. He said he had his ways.

The trip was long and they took many routes to avoid small towns and villages, but it was scenic, and Anko had to admire the view. She didn't care for many things anymore, but as they walked through different landscapes she let her eyes wander, a light smile touching her lips. Dry blood cracked on her skin as she did so.

They were traversing across a set of cliffs that had been once mined out, but had since been forgotten. Caves were set deep into craggy rock faces, filled with glittering gems that shone a spectrum of colours. Some were blood red, others a grass green. The bones of an ancient animal could be seen half-mined out of the ground a few yards to Anko's left. It was unlike anything she'd ever seen before.

A towering waterfall crashed down halfway through the cliff, its thunderous howl echoing across the sky. Its waters were a diamond blue, and they ran right across the path Anko and Orochimaru walked on. A few water soaked stepping stones provided the way across, but the slippery surface caused problems for Anko, mainly due to Iruka being on her back. Nevertheless, after much difficulty she joined her sensei on the other side.

All along the cliff they encountered jewels and hoards of treasure, as well as fossils and bones that dated back thousands of years. With the curiosity of a child Anko had asked Orochimaru what they were of and where they had come from – her constant question-asking was almost reminiscent of when Orochimaru had been her sensei all those years ago; it was funny how they'd lapsed back into old habits so quickly.

Steps and slopes soon led them off of the cliffs and away from the mines, and the beautiful wonders that rested within it. Orochimaru had explained how the native animals had driven the humans out from the cliffs, for they were large and vicious. Some of the bones Anko had spotted had been of those exact animals – they'd since become extinct in that area, so they had nothing to worry about whilst passing through now. The pair of them travelled from the cliffs to a large, grassy plain, where the grass rippled with the wind and the sun shone freely without trees blocking its rays. The day stretched on for what seemed like forever, but Anko knew they were making progress. Whenever Iruka seemed likely to stir Orochimaru would give him a hard enough hit on the head to knock him out again.

When night began to intrude on the day, the skies melted into hues of orange and pink, and the land glowed yellow. With each minute the blue that remained began to darken into a navy, and Anko began to wonder where they would stay for the night. When at last the remaining colour had drained out of the sky, Anko saw a few lights in the distance. They belonged to a rundown old town where crooks and scoundrels scoured the streets, and decency and manners were lacking. It was unappealing, Anko thought as they approached, but Orochimaru had explained that it was the only place they could stay, lest they sleep on the ground. He also had to speak to someone in the town.

Larger louts were spread throughout the town, some happy and singing merrily into the awakening night, and others angry, emotions ravaged by booze, and were brawling mercilessly. Anko spotted several pubs dotted about, and two or so hotels. They both seemed like they would be filthy inside, and the outside lights were broken too – instead of the titles of the hotels flaring brightly, letters were missing and were hanging loosely from their sockets.

They went for the one that looked nicer, although only by a small margin, called The Silver Ratchet Hotel. It consisted of four floors: there was a pub on the bottom floor, rooms for staying in on the second floor, more rooms on the third, and the top floor was where the owners stayed. The pub was jam-packed with tough men and their whores, and Anko kept her distaste for the scene to herself when she and Orochimaru walked through the doors.

A few people looked up as they entered, eyebrows knitting together as they tried to take in what they were seeing, their eyes widening as they understood. Others began to look up as their peers turned in shock to the entrants, and soon everything had gone silent, all eyes on Anko and Orochimaru. Anko had forgotten just how bad they looked.

No one moved for a minute. The bartender looked over the shoulders of his customers and gaped at the image of the man and woman at the entrance. He instantly recognized the male – who couldn't have heard of Orochimaru? He was a legendary Sannin, deadly and cruel. He was feared around these parts. Orochimaru had already set an example of a few members in this town a few months ago. The woman, however, he didn't know.

She looked exactly like Orochimaru, but more gruesome due to the dried blood that coated her body. Her eyes had a savage cruelty in them, as did Orochimaru's, although his were more subtle about it. The woman looked less in control of herself than her travelling companion. There was an aura of insecurity about her, and the bartender was afraid to find out where the blood on her body had come from – the lab coat she wore was a good indication. The darkness of the outside world made their illuminated forms stand out more clearly, and it was frightening. The extra man was hard to figure out, for they couldn't tell if he was dead or just unconscious.

"Orochimaru!" boomed a voice from the crowd of people. A man had stood up from his chair and was beckoning towards himself. He was short and pudgy, yet held a proud demeanour. A thick black moustache rested atop his lips. His waistcoat lay over a long-sleeved shirt, and he wore pinstriped trousers held up by a brown leather belt. Orochimaru made his way over to the man whilst Anko followed, picking her way through the crowd of people who still stared in silence.

Once they'd reached the male, Orochimaru took Iruka from Anko and said in a strict tone, "you're not to follow us upstairs until I come back and get you. Until then, make yourself at home." Then he turned away from her and began to climb up the stairs to a higher floor of the hotel, following the man he had arranged to meet up with. Each step groaned under the weight of the two humans, threatening to give way. Anko watched them disappear before she spun around to meet the stares of the pub's occupants.

"What are you all looking at," she growled, and watched as slowly but surely people began to return to their own business. Within minutes she was witnessing all sorts of activity: men being seduced by women who were scarcely dressed, men bantering with one another, others buying pints of sake and downing them in one go. She decided to indulge herself in a drink or two; her mouth was dry and her throat parched. On their long trek she'd cleansed her mouth of blood, although the taste still lingered. She wanted to wash that away now, so without further ado she dropped Iruka's unconscious body on the nearest couch and walked up to the bartender who was serving out drinks to other customers.

"I'll have a glass of Saké," she said roughly, eyes drifting from the apprehensive bartender to those who sat around her. They seemed to move away, unsettled by her appearance. She understood why, for who wouldn't be disconcerted by a girl splashed with blood, whose face resembled that of a deadly man they feared? She looked back at the counter as the glass of rice wine was passed to her, picking it up and taking a sip. It was warm, and ran smoothly down her throat. The wave of relief was imminent, her whole body shivering with joy at the drink. She realised just how starved she'd been of food and water – the hectic events of the past few days, doubled with the adrenaline she'd been on lately, had distracted her from basic daily needs. She quickly tipped back the glass and downed the rest of the drink, putting it down after. "Another," she demanded.

She drank four glasses of saké after that, stopping when she realised that she was drunk. It was a strong drink with a strong bite to it after being consumed, but Anko had relished every feeling. Now she was finding it hard to keep her focus on things, so when the bartender asked for his money, she could only blink twice. What money? "I... don't..." She couldn't finish her sentence, forgetting what she was trying to say. The bartender grew angry.

"Hey, listen lady. You better pay up or else. I gotta get by on something, an' if you don't pay then I can't afford for myself. Now, _pay,_" he snarled, his threats brushing by Anko who still was having difficulties in understanding what was happening. She leant back in her chair as a voice rang out beside her.

"I'll pay for her," a man said, drawing out the money needed and handing it over. The bartender snatched it from his hand and stalked back to his till, refusing to go near Anko again. Anko turned slowly to face the man – she couldn't quite see what he looked like due to the haziness in her eyes caused by the saké, but she had the impression of a hulking figure with strong muscles. She didn't know how to react to his kindness, so just slurred out a thank you instead. "It's alright," he grunted, before grinning. There was something off with it though, something hinting darker intentions. "I find tough girls attractive," he said, and ran a finger across Anko's cheek, rubbing off a bit of the dry blood there.

Anko narrowed her eyes, pulling back from his touch. She raised a hand to try and stop him approaching her any further, but he bat away her shaking fingers as easily as a fly. "What're you..."

"Hey now, don't try and resist. You owe me for paying you out a debt," he said, a taunting smile now on his lips. He stood up and gripped Anko roughly by the arm, with which she responded by immediately trying to escape. He kept a firm grip though, and her drunken state left her vulnerable to him. She swayed as he pulled her out of her chair. No one seemed to care about her mistreatment, and those who did look lost interest and returned to their petty squabbles with other men.

"Stop!" Anko managed to shout, but her voice was lost over the din of the other hotel-goers. She was dragged outside, limbs flailing uselessly against her assailant as she was pulled around into one of the dark alleyways by the hotel. She was getting no help here. When she did finally manage to stick an elbow in the man's face, he countered her strike with a blow of his own. Soon Anko was desperately clutching at a reddened cheek, sore and angry and still very much dizzy from her drinks. "You piece of shit," she spat scathingly. All the man did in response was stick his lips into her neck, kissing it softly.

"Now now, darlin'. Let's make this easy. Just stop your petty strugglin'-"

"Fuck you!" Anko jammed her knee up into her captor's crotch; he let out an anguished wail and let go of Anko's arm for a moment. Using the fence to her left as a support, she fled the man and ran back for the hotel. If she aimed for the stairs then maybe she could capture Orochimaru's attention and have him deal this asshole a world of pain for ever laying a finger on her. She'd do it herself, but all this movement in her drunken state was making her vision spin. Typical.

Managing to get back to the entrance of the hotel, Anko fumbled for the door handle to allow herself in, but not before her arm was grabbed once more by the same guy. This was really getting too much for her right now! She spun back around to face him as he jerked her aside, mind faintly picking up the sound of the door being opened behind her. Not putting so much effort into her struggle this time, fatigued by all that had happened today, she was pulled along by the man. She felt like she was going to pass out, with her vision blurry and headache increasing in strength. The edges of her sight were black and she could feel her other arm being tugged at before hearing the resounding crunch of a broken nose. Anko hoped it wasn't hers.

Her other arm was released - was the guy gone? - and she finally slipped out of consciousness as someone else took hold of her.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Wake up, Anko" sounded a voice. The same statement was repeated again, but louder this time, until Anko finally began to hear it. Unconsciousness broke into consciousness and her eyes flickered open, reality pouring in alongside a fair bit of light, too. Was it morning? How long had she been out? Trying to sit up made her head spin, so Anko stayed on the floor and allowed everything to come back into focus. When it did, she was surprised to see that her rescuer was none other than Iruka!

"Ir..uka?" she mumbled, squinting at him to see if it was just a trick of the light. Where was Orochimaru? It was morning already- surely he would have finished his meeting and come to look for her? Now she forced herself to sit up, ignoring the thumping pain in her head and looking directly at the Konoha ninja. "What are you doing with me? Where's Orochimaru!?"

Iruka didn't frown or look angry, but grew slightly exasperated, seeming more concerned at her forced movements and the obvious pain it was causing her. "Stay down, Anko! You'll hurt yourself! I carried you out here after I woke up and dealt with that godawful thug. I'm taking you away from Orochimaru. We won't even go to Konoha. You don't like it and that's fine. We'll find somewhere else, just so long as you're not with that _snake _anymore. He's going to get you killed!"

Anko's despair only grew. How far away from the hotel were they!? She didn't want to be away from Orochimaru right now when things were finally looking up. They were on their way to his main base and then they'd be safe from outside influence and intrusions such as Iruka's. She couldn't understand why he was being so persistent when it was clear Anko didn't want this! "Take me back!" she exclaimed, thumping a fist weakly at the ground. She felt something squish beneath her hand and raised it back up, looking half-heartedly at what she'd destroyed. A ladybird, small and fragile, lay dead on the ground, remnants smeared across the dirt and her fist. She wiped her fist against the grass to clean it off, and a thought whirred through her mind.

That'd be Iruka if he took her back to Orochimaru. If she went back, it'd be by herself. He had to leave on his own or he'd die. ... Orochimaru had ordered her to kill him; she hadn't thought about it at the time, detaching herself, but really, he had done a lot for her. He was possibly the nicest guy in Konoha, and she could genuinely say that he cared about her. Tears brimmed her eyes. For all the shit back in that village, he was the only good thing in her life, but she had to give him up, and if she could do that without him being killed, well, she would be happy with that.

"No," Iruka rebuked, standing firm on his decision to take Anko away from the Sannin. Of course he expected the ever-stubborn Anko to echo his words.

"No," Anko repeated him, but elaborated, "go on your own, Iruka. I'm going back whether you like it not. If you force me I'll be miserable. You might think you're doing what's right but you're not! You're being selfish! You're doing what _you_ think is best for me and not letting me decide what I think is best or what makes _me _happy. I won't ask you to come back and I won't do anymore against you... I... don't want to see you dead, Iruka. But I do want you gone, and I hope I never see you again for your sake." She finished there and looked around. They were partway up a hill. The town with the hotel was small in the distance. It'd take Anko a while to get back, but not too long considering she wasn't hauling another person this time.

Iruka looked conflicted. He really wanted to stay set on this. Anko was out of her mind, and he didn't trust much of what she said as her own feelings. She'd changed so much and it frightened him to know a person could do such a thing in such a short space of time. But he was swayed, finally, when Anko let out a choked "please," the look on her face one he couldn't argue with. He wasn't happy with the situation at all, and he really wished things could have turned out differently, but at the end of the day he guessed his hopes were simply too high. He had a habit of working himself up for things that would never happen...

"... Okay, Anko," Iruka finally relented. Anko's demeanour didn't change. She didn't smirk or grin to give away any manipulation that had been going on. She just had a sad smile on her face, like she genuinely regretted these events. Maybe she did care for him after all, through the twisted thoughts surrounding everyone else who had previously been in her life. "I'm going to miss you," he admitted, and then added, "so much." Anko nodded a little, her head bobbing tiredly.

"I guess I'll miss you too." She reached out and took his hand in hers, squeezing it comfortingly. "I don't have anything to give you as a parting gift ya' know, but I think I'll be taking that talisman back don't you think?" she managed a small laugh and winked at him. Iruka's chest was bursting with a warm glow, that Anko could have pulled back some of her old cheerful personality for him in this moment. Being reminded of the talisman, and feeling embarrassed that she had found it on him before he had had the opportunity to present it to her, he reached into his pocket and drew it out. The photo had been lost a while back. Iruka passed over the talisman and smiled gently at her.

"Look after it, Anko. I hope it keeps away the nightmares."

"Yeah, me too. Now get outta here ya scrub!" Anko chuckled, trying to remain upbeat even though she felt horrifically unhappy. She leaned in as Iruka was getting up, letting him hug her before she said a last "goodbye."

Iruka smiled before returning the word. "Goodby-achk!" he suddenly choked. His eyes grew curiously wide, confusion on his face as he spluttered out blood. It landed on Anko's cheek, who's own face had split into a look of terror. An intense frown grew on Iruka's face as he looked down at the blood, and then at his stomach. A snake's head hissed there, and it dawned on Iruka just what had happened. His body was shutting down quickly at this point. His head jerked up and he looked once more into Anko's eyes, trying to splutter out a few last dying words. "L-l-l-lo-o-v-ve... y-y-ou" And suddenly the weight of his body collapsed onto Anko's from their previous hug, his breath coming up short before stopping altogether. Anko let out a scream, terrified and in shock of what she'd just witnessed. The snake retracted from Iruka's back and up into the sleeve of a tall, lean, man who looked very much displeased.

"My, my, just what have I come across here," Orochimaru sighed. "How messy," he commented, before walking forwards and using his foot to kick Iruka's dead body off of Anko. Blood pooled around him, and had already stained Anko's front. She looked like a deer caught in the headlights, still grappling to understand the situation. "Get up, my dear." He sounded commanding. "We must leave immediately, and I'm so glad that there's no more _distractions_ to slow down our journey from here."

Anko couldn't form words. She just looked up, fear-eyed at Orochimaru for what he would do to her for this. Or maybe that was just it. Kill Iruka and have no more be said. Now he'd never meddle in Orochimaru's plans again, and Anko would just be left all to the Sannin. Managing to stagger to her feet, Anko looked down at Iruka's body on the ground. All that blood... when she acknowledged whose it was, it made her feel incredibly, horrifically sick.

- - - - - - - - - - ENDCHAPTER - - - - - - - - - - - -

Hey guys 'sup. :u Hell yeah it's been 2 years. What's a good fanfiction without the longest fuckin' Hiatus you ever saw. I'm... okay not gonna lie I probably won't finish this. The only reason you're getting this today is because 13 of the 15 pages were already done from 2 years ago and I decided to finish it and fuck with my original plan a bit. Yeaap. Good author.

If you guys express enough interest in reviews then I can post another chapter just going through the basics of how the story would progress from here to the end? Once this fic's been tied up I'm going to abandon this account for the rest of my life. I've moved from writing to art, which I enjoy a fair amount more, and if I were to write more fanfiction it'd be on another account instead of this one.

But I'm glad you've all enjoyed this story! It means a lot, and I got a few messages asking if I'd finish this (which I didn't get till today cause I forgot my username and password until now hahaa). Your interest really makes me happy. Sorry that my own interests moved on, and I thank you all for sticking with me. You guys are amazing and I wish you all the best. (and omg i'm just so sorry it took 2 years for an update that's really awful dfgjfdg)


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